And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You
by Anath Tsurugi
Summary: "Tell me what you cherish most," the witch hissed. We all know the story of the Little Mermaid, of course. But what if giving everything up were not a matter of choice, and loss was the only way to save what mattered most? When the young mermyd Shiro falls in love with the princess Allura, he will he will find just those answers awaiting him in the sea witch's bargain.
1. On the Night We Met,

(A/N) So...this happened. My first foray into the Voltron fandom. I dunno, I guess I'm just really enamored of the idea of Shiro in the princess role. So, as always, let's take this little vehicle for a ride and see where we end up.

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 1: On the Night We Met, the Stars were Dancing_

 _Once upon a time, which is all times and no times, but not the very best of times, there was a kingdom beneath the sea. This kingdom, the world of Arus, was ruled by two kind and just monarchs – a queen and a king who loved each other dearly. They had ruled the Kingdom of Arus in peace for many years, and had also kept peace with the kingdom of the land dwellers, Altea, for just as long. Between the rulers of Arus and the king of Altea, a glorious time of peace and prosperity was maintained._

 _But sadly, no time of peace can last forever, and in time, the sea queen began to fall prey to a devastating illness. As she slowly succumbed to the disease, the king, fearful of losing his beloved wife, began to turn to ever more desperate measures in an effort to cure her._

 _It was the queen's twin sister, the court sorceress, who finally offered the despairing king a solution. Their answer lay in quintessence – the seed that lay at the heart of all magic. But quintessence possessed both light and dark aspects and its raw form was, at best, unstable. The purest well of quintessence in their world had been sealed off many generations before in order to maintain balance in the world. If they could only tap into this well, they would be able to affect change. They would be able to stop the one they loved from dying._

 _Unfortunately, it would take more than a mere spell to gain access to this most taboo of places. It would take an arcane ritual of such power and dread that none before had ever attempted to perform it. But now? Now they had become desperate, and they were willing to pay whatever hideous price the ritual demanded of them._

 _They were willing to sacrifice the blood of an innocent._

XxX

 _"Give me the child."_

XxX

Allura knew she wasn't supposed to be out after dark, but really, what four-year-old did something because they were supposed to? The stars had been calling to her tonight, and it would've been rude to ignore that call. Father always insisted that, as a princess, she must never be rude. Therefore, regardless of the bedtime rule, she absolutely had to do her duty as princess of Altea and go out to see what it was the stars wanted.

Indeed, the glowing pinpricks of light far above did not disappoint her. The stars seemed to shine brighter than they ever had before on this night, many of them dancing through the beautifully lit heavens in blazing loops and spirals. It was almost as if they were dancing just for her. What could she do but rise up on the tips of her toes and dance with them, giggling and singing as she spun across the sand. The faster she span, the more the salty sea breeze picked up her white hair and the skirts of her blue nightgown.

Finally making herself dizzy with her spinning and gazing up at the sky, the little princess tumbled over backward into the sand, laughing as she went. But over the sound of her laughter and the crash of the surf, she suddenly became aware of the heavy sound of one of the castle gates being opened.

Oh, no! They knew she'd snuck out. Someone had seen her. They'd found her bed empty. She was going to get in trouble! Scrambling away from the beach, Allura quickly moved to try and hide herself among the boulders at the cliff base, listening with terror for the sound of her name being shouted. Except that the sounds of angry shouting were not what came to the little princess next.

The next sounds to enter Allura's ears were those of a baby crying, its tiny wails piercing the suddenly still and quiet night. As the baby's cries grew sharper and sharper, the dancing stars overhead almost seemed to become angry, slashing and sparking furiously across the sky.

Something was wrong.

"You shouldn't have brought him, Colleen," the voice of one of her father's chief advisors, Samuel, drifted down the cliff face. "This may be dangerous."

"Nonsense," his wife returned. "You heard Honerva's message. The danger's passed. I wasn't about to leave him alone in the middle of such a fuss."

Matthew? The baby crying was Matthew? But...what were they all doing out so late at night if they weren't looking for her? If they'd been talking to Queen Honerva...maybe they were going to the Betwixt? Curiosity aroused, Allura began to creep along the base of the cliff, listening to the group as they passed by overhead.

"Now, now, I'm sure Colleen wouldn't have brought him along if there were really any danger," Coran's voice joined the conversation. "Isn't that right, Your Majesty?"

"Yes," her father answered, though his voice was much more strained than she was used to hearing it. "But I'm still not sure what we'll find when we arrive. I'd feared our next message from Arus would be the announcement of Honerva's passing...and now _this._ What they've done, it- it's _monstrous._ "

More words were exchanged, but Allura couldn't pretend to understand the conversation the adults were having. All she was really focused on was keeping up with them. The sand beneath her feet was soon giving way to rock and shell, and at one point she had to stifle a cry when she cut her bare foot on one of the rocks. There was no going back now. She'd need to get help when they reached the Betwixt. So she was relieved beyond words to finally see the building coming into view along the rocky coast.

The strange building was located half on land and half in the sea, at the place where the two realms connected. Allura didn't know all that much about it, having only been inside once or twice. What she _did_ know was that it was the place where her father went to meet with the queen and king of the sea, Honerva and Zarkon. She didn't know exactly how it worked, but what she did understand was that there was neither air nor water contained within the Betwixt. Whatever it was within its walls, it allowed both humans and merfolk to move around freely inside it.

When Allura finally reached the building, it was to see Coran, Samuel, and Colleen heading through the entryway, Colleen holding a squalling Matthew in her arms. Her father, on the other hand, was still waiting just outside.

"You all go on ahead. I'll be along in a moment," he told his advisors. Once they'd gone, he just stood there for what felt like several long moments to Allura. When he finally spoke, it was directly to her, though he didn't turn to face her.

"What are you doing out, my child? You shouldn't be here," he said softly, the tone of his voice letting her know he wasn't angry with her, though Allura did feel properly scolded when she stepped out of hiding, limping toward her father.

"I'm sorry, Father," she whimpered, trying to be strong and not reveal how much her foot was hurting her. "I was- playing with the stars...and I heard you all go by."

"Playing with the stars?" he asked with a chuckle as he turned to look at her.

"Uh-huh. They were calling me. We danced."

For a moment, her father looked thoughtful at her words, but when he knelt to allow her into the circle of his arms, his face became the warm, loving one she knew. He laughed quietly as he lifted her up, cradling her against his broad chest. "Did you now? Such a magnificent playmate as all that? Well, it seems to me you've payed well enough for your little misadventure. Let's see what we can do for that foot," he said as he carried her through the entryway.

"Father, were...were you all talking to Queen Honerva?" she couldn't quite help asking.

"Yes, my beloved. Yes, we were," he answered after another long moment of silence.

"But why so late? What's going on?"

"I don't rightly know, my darling. Only that Zarkon and Haggar may have done a terrible thing," he tried to explain, his expression tightening up again as she looked at him.

"Who's Haggar?"

"Honerva's sister. She's one of the mer sorceresses."

"But she did something bad?"

"I think so, yes. We'll know more soon," he said as he carried her through the corridors. Up ahead, she could hear the faint whisper of voices, but couldn't quite make out anything being said, and when they finally entered the conference room, she could see why everyone was speaking in whispers.

Honerva was sitting at the central table, looking sad and badly shaken. Her beautiful tail, deep violet with patterns of red and yellow in the scales, twitched from time to time, as if she had to remind herself not to move. Coran and Samuel were seated at the table beside her, discussing the situation in hushed whispers, but it wasn't any of this that captured Allura's attention.

Colleen had mostly managed to calm Matthew, and she'd carried him over to one of the alcoves off the main room. It was set up as a large rest area, its floor space mainly consisting of an oversized mattress. Princess Acxa, Honerva's firstborn, was seated at the edge of the alcove, her attention focused on the bed's main occupant.

Upon the bed lay a young merboy. His tail was the black of polished onyx and it was laced through with mesmerizing white markings. With the exception of a pure white forelock, his hair was the same black color. Allura had seen many vibrant variations in mer hair color. In fact, she was an ardent lover of Acxa's deep blue hair and was constantly extorting promises from the teenage princess that they would find a way to make Allura's own hair the same color. But for all the different colors she'd seen, she'd never seen two distinct colors in the same set of locks before. The boy couldn't have been any older than she was, and if she'd been old enough for such thoughts, she might have thought him beautiful, but even as it was, such thoughts were difficult to acknowledge with the myriad of injuries covering the boy's body.

There were angry red cuts up and down his arms and tail, all just barely healed, along with what would've been a very deep, jagged cut running from his right shoulder down across his chest. A much thinner cut ran across his neck, almost as if someone had attempted to cut his throat and failed, leaving damage to one of the delicate gill flaps on the right side of his neck. The injuries were capped by another jagged wound across the bridge of his nose, this one still oozing blood. The boy slept fitfully on the bed, breathing raggedly as he tossed his head from side to side and his tail twitched.

"Oh," Allura gasped at the sight of him. It didn't take much convincing to get her father to put her down before he joined the conversation at the table. Allura hurried to the alcove as quick as she could on her hurt foot, which suddenly seemed like such a little thing compared to the harm this boy had suffered. "What happened to him?" she asked Acxa.

"Something awful," the older princess answered distantly as she brushed the white hair from the boy's face.

At this, Allura mustered up the fiercest glare she could manage. Not much for her mere four years, but it was no less ernest for this. "Monstrous. A terrible thing. Something bad. Something awful. No one will tell me what's going on. I'm a princess, too. I should help. Tell me what happened," she demanded.

Acxa offered up an amused smile at this, but there was still sorrow in her eyes. "You're right. I suppose you have a responsibility like the rest of us. It's just- it's difficult to explain. Someone tried to convince him to sacrifice his life for a cause he's too young to understand. He's such a brave, selfless boy. He would've done anything they'd asked. But now-"

"Papa...Papa..." the boy cried out helplessly in his sleep, tears dribbling down his face, mingling with the blood from his wound. "Mama...no... _no!_ You can't...they're not... _take me!_ "

"Hush. Hush, Takashi," Acxa tried to soothe him, a few tears slipping down her own face as she stroked his hair. "It's over now."

"Takashi? Is that his name?" Allura asked, feeling tears start to well up behind her own eyes as she looked down at the boy. He seemed so sad, so helpless, so in pain. She wanted to do anything she could to help him. Acxa just nodded in response, unable to speak.

"Poor boy, poor baby," Colleen said softly, letting her free hand move to join Acxa's in stroking Takashi's blood and tear stained face. "So young to be without his parents."

"He's an orphan?" she asked, feeling her heart tug a little more in Takashi's direction as she sat down on the bed beside him. Hesitantly, she reached out a hand to rest on an uninjured part of his arm. "I know a little what that's like. My mother died when I was a baby," she said to the merboy, mindless of whether he could hear her or not. "I'm so sorry...Takashi."

At the loss of his mother's attention, baby Matthew had begun to cry again. His mother tried to soothe him, but she was just a moment too late. Takashi woke at the sound of the baby's crying, his gray eyes fluttering open as he turned his head in Matthew's direction.

"What...what's wrong?" he mumbled weakly, reaching a hand over to touch the baby's plump cheek as he attempted to sit up. "Why're you crying?"

"Takashi, please don't move. You're still badly injured. You need to rest," Acxa scolded him.

"'m fine," he murmured, failing to sit up, but still running his thumb over Matthew's cheek. "Hey...it's okay. Don't cry," he soothed, beginning to hum quietly.

"He's fine, really. You just rest, little one," Colleen tried to console the young merboy, but whatever it was about Takashi's attention, Matthew soon stopped crying. He smiled and cooed for the boy, grabbing one of his fingers in a single pudgy hand and waving it around.

Takashi winced in pain at the sudden movement, but he still smiled at the baby, not taking his arm back. "There now. See?"

Allura shook her head, gently removing Takashi's finger from Matthew's grip and taking a moment to pat the baby boy on the head before resting Takashi's arm back at his side. "You don't need to take care of anyone else right now. You need to save your strength so you can get better," she told him.

Takashi stared up at her for several moments, not seeming to know what to make of her. What he ultimately went with was a small nod and a tiny, "Hi."

"Oh, right. I know your name, but I guess you don't know mine yet. I'm Allura," she said with a friendly smile.

"Hi...Allura," he returned with a small smile of his own.

"You don't have to be scared anymore. You'll be safe here," she reassured him. "I'm going to take care of you."

"Thank you...Allura," he said slowly, taking his time on her name. For a few minutes, they just continued to smile at each other, but then Takashi's smile drifted back into a look of sadness as his gaze moved out into the conference room then back up to Allura. "You're hurt," he said, and there was such a tone of sorrow in his voice, it just about broke the little princess's heart. Never mind that _he_ was lying half dead after who knew what had happened to him. _She_ was hurt. That was clearly the only thing that concerned him.

"No! It's all right. Really, it's nothing," she tried to argue, at first wondering how he'd known before realizing it would be very easy to spot the trail of blood she'd left walking over. "It's just a little cut."

"No. You're hurt. Let me see," he insisted, trying to sit up again. "Let me help."

"You don't have to do anything, Takashi. I'll be fine. I _promise,_ " she said, keeping a hand on his arm to keep him from sitting up.

" _Please,_ Allura. I can help. Let me help," he pleaded with her, several more tears dripping down his face, and the way he spoke with such heartbreak drew the princess to bring her injured foot up on the bed, though she wasn't sure what Takashi thought he could do.

"Takashi-" Acxa started in warning, but before she could say anything more, the boy pressed trembling fingers to the cut on Allura's foot. A faint purple light sparked at the tips of his fingers, connecting him to her. Immediately, Allura could feel the skin knitting itself back together. As she watched the magic work, the young princess gasped in amazement.

But as the power continued to flow between them, Allura began to see the effect it was having on Takashi. Beads of sweat were forming on his forehead as the wound across his face began to reopen, seeping blood freely down onto his cheeks. The cuts on his arms and tail began to reopen as well, trickling even more blood onto his pale skin and dark scales. Allura cried out in fear when she saw the cut on his neck begin to reopen, allowing a single drop of blood to escape onto his collarbone.

"Takashi, stop! Please stop! It's hurting you! You don't have to do this! _Takashi, please!_ " she begged him, trying to pull her foot away. But the connection between them was too strong and she found she couldn't break it. Takashi continued to pour energy into the cut, reopening his own injuries in the process. Last to begin to tear open was the deep cleft in his chest – the wound over his heart.

" _Stop! Just stop! Please!_ " she cried, tears pouring down her face, but it seemed that Takashi himself had lost control. She saw a look of fear in his eyes before they began to glow yellow, and the energy between them sparked again, leaving the merboy's fingers with the appearance of claws.

"Takashi!" Honerva's terrified voice sounded in Allura's ear. When she looked back, it was to see the sea queen moving toward them as if she were swimming through water. Quickly flinging herself down on top of the boy, the queen pressed her forehead to his. "Be still. Be still, child," she soothed him, slowly breathing in the flare of power that bled from him. And just as slowly, his wounds began to close up again, his appearance returning to normal as he collapsed back on the mattress. The only difference looked to be that the streak of white in his hair had grown a little longer.

"I just- wanted to help," Takashi whimpered, several more tears squeezing their way from beneath his closed lids.

"I know. I know. It's all right," the queen soothed, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead as she smoothed his hair back once more. "You _did_ help, but for now you _must rest._ Your body can't handle the strain. Sleep, Takashi. Just rest, dear child."

Eyes briefly flickering open one last time, Takashi turned his head to look at Allura. "Will you- still be here...when I wake up?"

Nodding slowly, Allura reached forward to brush a few tears from her new friend's face. "I will. I promise."

With a smile that was both sad and relieved, Takashi slipped back into unconsciousness. Honerva slowly sat up, breathing her own sigh of relief. When Allura glanced down at her foot, she found the cut completely healed, as if she'd never injured it at all. Looking up at the queen, the young princess felt a knot of guilt clench at her heart.

"I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt him," she whispered, struggling to rein in her tears.

Honerva offered her a tired smile. "You didn't know what would happen, Allura. This wasn't your doing. Takashi, he...he just wanted to help," she said, repeating his words from earlier as her gaze grew distant. "He's such a good boy. If anything... _I_ did this."

Then, quite suddenly, the queen doubled over in pain. For a brief moment, her purple hair flashed a sickly shade of white and her features appeared gnarled and scarred, her beautiful tail going a dull gray color.

"Mother!" Acxa started in panic, swimming further into the alcove to hover worriedly over her mother.

"It's all right. It's all right," Honerva rushed to reassure her daughter, holding a hand up as she returned to normal. "We're just taking a moment to equalize. We're fine."

"So...did this ritual actually work?" Allura's father asked as he moved to stand beside the alcove.

"Not the way they wanted it to," Honerva explained as she wrapped her arms around herself. "Takashi- became frightened near the end. His panic delayed them. If they'd been allowed to finish it...it would've been at the cost of Takashi's life. I couldn't let that happen. I owe Ulaz so much more than to let his little boy perish."

"Then...why do you look-" Coran started to ask.

"It's only temporary," she said, shifting one of her hands to look down at it. "What they stole from him...it will purchase only temporary respite from the course of the disease...a few decades more or less."

"But, Honerva, if they failed, if this is only temporary...what more did they do? Things are- out of balance. The land, the sky, the sea...they are all angered. That doesn't happen over a few stolen years," Samuel pointed out. He and his wife both had traces of the ancient fey bloodlines in them, so they could easily sense things like this.

"More than their trespass against an innocent soul...the well is barely sealed. It wouldn't take much to rip it open again. And...more than even daring to open the well in the first place...they allowed something through into this world," Acxa explained for her mother.

"What something?" Allura's father pressed.

"A nightmare," Honerva answered, not looking at any of them. Her disquiet look was for something none of them could see – something not in the room with them.

"Q- Queen Honerva?" Allura began nervously before anyone else could say anything.

"Yes, Allura?" the mermyd acknowledged, slowly looking up at her.

"Takashi...Takashi's not going to die, is he?" she made herself ask, feeling her lower lip start to tremble as another ball of sadness started to well up in her throat. She was so afraid, but she had to know.

Again, Honerva offered up that exhausted smile as she reached across Takashi's prone form to lay a comforting hand on Allura's cheek, gently wiping away the tear trails from earlier with a single thumb. "No, dear child. I will never allow that. I'll keep him safe."

"Can...do you think I could help, too? I don't think he's going to take very good care of himself," she said as she looked down at him again. She already felt horribly guilty for causing him even more pain when he'd already endured so much. She would do whatever she had to to help him.

Honerva's smile widened a little at this and she managed a small laugh as she glanced between the two children. "You know, I think you're right, little miss. Our Takashi won't make this job easy for us. I will gladly take all the help I can get."

Allura managed a smile of her own, bobbing her head in a nod. "Then I promise. I'll help protect Takashi from the nightmare," she said solemnly.

The expressions of the other adults grew uneasy at this declaration. Allura had no idea what they were trying to communicate to each other as they looked back and forth amongst themselves, but Colleen was the one to finally put some of it into words.

"Perhaps we should continue this conversation elsewhere? Give the others time to arrive? Maybe leave the children to rest up a bit."

"Yes, I- I think that will be best," Coran stuttered out.

"Acxa, would you be able to mind Matthew for us?" Colleen asked the mer princess.

The sixteen-year-old looked ready to protest being left with them, but when she turned to her mother, the queen just gave her a very pointed look. Acxa conceded by nodding and settling herself on the mattress, holding her arms out for the baby. Once Colleen had passed him over and they were certain he wasn't going to make a fuss, the five adults headed out of the conference room, seeking some place away from young ears.

While Acxa cradled little Matthew, Allura settled herself in beside Takashi, preparing herself for a long wait. After all, she didn't care if it was an hour or a week she had to wait for him. She was going to keep the promise she'd made to the merboy. She was going to be here for him when he woke up.

 _Don't worry, Takashi. It's going to be all right. I'm watching over you._

XxX

 _The nightmare the sea queen had spoken of was the Galra._

 _The Galra were a fearsome race of cursed beings who had emerged from the well upon its being broken open. They were both merfolk and not, with human upper bodies and tails, but that was where the similarities stopped. The tails the Galra were possessed of were more eel-like than the fish tails of the merpeople. Their skin was colored purple and their eyes shone yellow in the ocean depths. They all possessed a very distinct set of deep blue head fins and instead of the simple webbing that the merfolk had between their fingers, Galra fingers continued on to end in claws._

 _They were creatures of shadow, of terror and despair and madness. They were as a plague upon the seas and wherever they went, their unbound dread went with them. They had unnatural powers even beyond what was typical of the merfolk and they were at odds with the sea people from the moment they came into the world. The sea queen immediately had the wicked race banished from her realm, and in being complicit in their creation, the sea king had fallen just as far as the cursed Galra, becoming like them, and becoming their leader._

 _War raged between the Galra and the children of the sea from the very start, but even so, life still had to go on in the watery world. In need of comfort and estranged from her husband, the sea queen took on a new lover, to whom she bore twin children and one final son._

XxX

"Ooh! How long? How long? _How long?_ " Shay squealed as she zipped eagerly back and forth above Takashi's head. The eight-year-old smiled as he watched his charge swim around.

"No sooner for the asking, little oyster. We have to be patient."

"No! Don't wanna!" the little princess squealed in delight, and from any other two-year-old, such a phrase would have heralded death and destruction, but it was the collective opinion of the kingdom of Arus that Princess Shay was incapable of being anything other than a perfect sweetheart. Such was the case now as she swam around the receiving chamber, only stopping to give out hugs and kisses to Takashi and her other brothers and sisters. "Want baby brother!"

"Heh, _that's_ definitely a first," Rolo, the queen's third-born, commented as he flipped his lavender tail up and down for Shay to chase. "Normally the baby's angry about not being the youngest anymore. What's our Shay going to do when there's a new favorite in the castle?" he asked, giving a powerful swing with his tail and sending Shay surging through the water to the next oldest, Florona.

"Shay is everyone's favorite, though," Florona pointed out as she caught her baby sister, twirling with her through the water. "This baby brother could be as adorable as _ten_ baby brothers and she would still be the darling of all the seas."

"We'll see," Rolo returned, the smirk on his lips deepening, but somehow not quite reaching his eyes.

"Yes, we will...assuming they both come through it all right," Plaxum, the youngest of Zarkon's children, was the one to finally give voice to the fear they all had.

"Hush, Plaxy," Florona scolded the twelve-year-old, clapping her hands over Shay's ears to keep her from hearing such awful words. "Of course they'll be fine."

"We don't know that," Plaxum continued obstinately. "Gyrgan said she shouldn't have another child. He's said it this whole time."

"Plaxy, that's enough. You mustn't scare the little ones," Florona insisted, her vibrant red hair swirling through the water as she hugged Shay tightly against her chest.

"No, Flo! _No!_ " Shay complained loudly, struggling to escape her older sister's agitated embrace.

"Shiro?" Rax suddenly spoke up from his place beside the boy on the seaweed rope lattice. "Is Mama okay?"

Takashi offered the youngest prince a reassuring smile as he reached a hand down to tousle his soft gray hair. Neither of the twins could properly say his name, so they'd taken to just calling him Shiro. Even little Matt had picked up on it on their trips to the surface.

"She's going to be fine. Your mama just needs your good thoughts."

At his words, Rax nodded solemnly, shifting just a little in the lattice so that he could sway in the current without having to move too much himself. Then he closed his eyes and a look of intense concentration settled over his face.

Takashi couldn't pretend to understand everything the healers said as they came in and out of the queen's chamber, but he did know that things weren't going well inside. All he could do, all he was _permitted_ to do, was give the youngest of the royal children hope that they wouldn't be without their mother. Of all of them, only _he_ knew just how awful that was. Queen Honerva and her other advisors had been kind to him, but...it just wasn't the same as still having his own parents. This wonderful

family that had taken him in still didn't quite change the fact that he was an orphan. His official position was playmate and guardian to Rax and Shay, and he would take on that role with the new little prince as well. It really was the least he could do for his queen, as she preferred he didn't use his healing abilities.

He'd gained somewhat better control over them these three years, but every time he _did_ use them, a few more of his dark strands of hair would turn white, and the queen always said she didn't want to learn what would happen if his whole head went white. So she'd decreed he was only to use those powers when there was no other choice – and even then...

"Has there been any word?" Trigel asked as she swam into the chamber with her own newborn in a sling around her chest. Newborn mermyds _could_ swim within the first few hours after birth, but they did also tire easily, so most new mothers tended to carry them around until they became stronger. The chief engineer's son was already quite strong for his age, but they could also all tell that little Hunk just very much enjoyed being in his mother's arms.

"Nothing good," Rolo answered. "This one just doesn't seem to want to be born." He didn't need to say how bad off the queen must be. Even out here, the taste of blood was already in the water. The metallic flavor must have been truly oppressive in the queen's chamber.

"Well...I suppose there's nothing for it but to wait," the chief engineer conceded as she moved to join Takashi and Rax in the lattice, being careful of Hunk all the while.

After a time, when Rax had nearly exhausted himself from good thinking and Shay had begun to wind down from all her excited darting about, Hunk began to get fussy in his sling, crying softly while his little yellow tail swished through the water.

"Now I know you aren't hungry, little one. What could be wrong?" Trigel asked, though she smiled affectionately down at her son.

Leaning across the lattice to get closer to them, Takashi reached out a hand to pat the baby boy's head. It wasn't long at all before he was singing quietly – an old song he remembered hearing his mother sing...long ago...

 _I pray you'll be my eyes_

 _And watch him where he goes_

 _And help him to be wise_

 _Help me to let go_

 _Every mother's prayer_

 _Every child knows_

 _Lead him to a place_

 _Guide him with your grace_

 _To a place where he'll be safe_

Rax cuddled a little closer to him and Shay sighed happily as she snuggled up to them in the lattice. Takashi could see Trigel smiling as Hunk started to settle, all of them pleased to hear Takashi singing. In most things, he'd been told, he took after his father, but there was one very distinct thing he'd inherited from his mother – an exquisite voice. The most beautiful on land or sea, he'd sometimes been told. He didn't know if it was as wonderful as all that, but he did know that people smiled when he sang. He could make people happy with his singing. So when there was nothing else he _could_ do, he would sing.

 _I pray he finds your light_

 _And holds it in his heart_

 _As darkness falls each night_

 _Remind him where you are_

 _Every mother's prayer_

 _Every child knows_

 _Need to find a place_

 _Guide him to a place_

 _Give him faith so he'll be safe_

As Takashi meandered his way through the old melody, he began to notice that the other three royal siblings had ceased their anxious drifting about the chamber, each one gradually joining them on the lattice to listen in.

 _Lead him to a place_

 _Guide him with your grace_

 _To a place where he'll be safe_

By the time he'd finished singing, Hunk and the twins had all drifted into an easy sleep, each one smiling faintly. Even obstinate Plaxum was smiling at him from where she'd situated herself a few rungs up on the lattice. Rolo sighed as he shook his head, though he still smiled at Takashi.

"Y'know, little Shiro, someday you're going to tell us why you're squandering that singing voice joining the Guard instead of training to be one of the court musicians."

"My father was a member of the Guard," he said, not for the first and, he was sure, neither for the last time. Rolo and the others knew exactly who his father had been. Ulaz Shirogane had been a member of the Palace Guard, the elite cadre of warriors dedicated to protecting the royal family. Takashi had every intention of honoring his father's memory by taking up his former position.

"Right, right. But your mother was a court singer, too. Don't suppose _her_ memory needs to be honored," Rolo pointed out. The eldest prince was a musician himself and this was a constant source of debate between the two of them.

"Now, Rolo, I believe you're well aware that it's Takashi's decision to make," Trigel scolded the prince mildly, reaching over to pat Takashi's shoulder in thanks for the lullaby.

Rolo just shrugged. With nothing more to add to the conversation, that soon tapered off as well, leaving the small group to wait out the night in anxious silence, only occasionally broken by Takashi's singing. It was when the young boy was coming to the end of another song that something began to happen.

A despairing cry echoed into the receiving chamber from beyond the doorway to the queen's chamber. Takashi shook himself from the half sleep he'd fallen into and swam toward the curtains concealing the entryway. That had been Blaytz. Even making such an uncharacteristic sound, he would know the general's voice.

"Blaytz, you really ought to leave. _Now,_ " Gyrgan's scolding voice came from beyond the curtain.

"But my _son-_ "

"You can't help him now. I don't think you want to see this. Just take Acxa and go."

 _They're dying,_ Takashi realized in pained shock. _Honerva and the new baby prince...they're dying_ _ **right now.**_ _I have to do something._

Just a few years ago, he would've needed physical contact to make the healing work. Now he could do it with just a clearly defined image of the person he wanted to help. So he pictured the queen in her chamber, struggling to give birth to her last child, and he gave her what he could of his healing energy, feeling the power drain from his body as he offered it to his queen.

The young mermyd didn't see the results of his desperate gamble right away. In fact, the next thing he became aware of was coming to with Trigel and the royal siblings all gathered around him, looks of worry on their faces.

"He's awake!" Plaxum cheered.

"Oh, thank goodness," Florona said softly.

"Takashi, you _know_ that was dangerous," Trigel scolded him.

"Did it work?"

"He's all right?" Blaytz's voice drifted into their midst. When Takashi looked up at the entryway, it was to see the general just outside the curtain. When he saw Takashi awake, he moved down to gather the young mermyd in his arms, offering him a grim but relieved smile as he carried him into Honerva's chamber.

"Thank you," he said, voice no louder than the sweep of a gentle current. "Thank you...Takashi Shirogane. You saved my son. You saved them both."

"Is she angry?" Takashi asked, too tired to be nervous. He was just as content to let the general carry him.

Blaytz chuckled quietly at this. "Perhaps a little, but more than anything else, I believe she's just relieved her son's alive."

"I am, too," Takashi said, unable to help cuddling a little closer against the large mermyd's warm chest.

He could tell that the filtration system in the royal chamber had been turned up to its highest settings in an effort to clean the blood from the water. The room was still cloudy with the stuff, but Takashi could tell that the taste was already starting to clear. His gills eagerly gulped at the swiftly swirling water, the oxygen beginning to wake him up a little more.

Honerva was situated in her kelp hammock, secured very tightly to keep either her or the baby from drifting away. Acxa was by her side and Gyrgan was moving anxiously around the queen, still checking her over after the difficult labor. The new baby prince was resting in her arms, suckling contentedly from his mother's breast.

Though the queen did look relieved, there was still sadness in her eyes as Blaytz carried Takashi to her. When the general came to her side, she reached out a hand to examine the new strands of white in his hair.

"Takashi..." she trailed off mournfully, not seeming to know what to say.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, though he met her gaze with a look that said he didn't regret what he'd done. "I had to. I'm supposed to protect him."

Honerva gave a pained laugh at his declaration, her expression a strange mix of sorrow and fondness. "Wouldn't you at least like to know his name before swearing your life to him, little warrior?"

"Uh-huh," Takashi said softly, nodding as he looked down at the baby in the queen's arms.

His skin was the same warm tan color as his mother's _–_ a color Takashi had once heard Allura refer to as 'sun-kissed', though such phrases didn't always make sense to him. The little one's tail, on the other hand, had more of Blaytz's coloring in it. The scales were a vivid blue color, sprinkled generously in several places with iridescent markings that tended toward ruby and sapphire. When the baby briefly blinked his eyes open, Takashi saw that they were a deep blue color.

"Lance," the queen answered quietly, dropping a kiss on the baby's head. "His name is Lance."

"Lance," Takashi repeated in wonder as he watched his new charge nurse. "Hi, Lance."

The baby prince briefly released his mother's breast to shift in her arms, and when he went searching for his food source again, he made several precious cooing sounds that felt, to Takashi, almost like a spear through the heart. As had happened when Rax and Shay had first smiled at him, he knew that Lance had won him over completely. He would do whatever it took to keep this little mermyd safe and happy, just as he did with Rax and Shay, with Hunk and Matt.

With Allura.

He'd failed before, but he was _not_ going to fail this time. He was going to protect his new family _–_ no matter what it took.

XxX

 _The young merboy was better than his word. No better guardian could have been asked for for the queen's youngest children. He cared for the pod of young mermyds like they were his own siblings. Even as the rest of the kingdom became consumed with the conflict with the Galra, he always saw that his young charges were looked after and able to just be children._

 _Even though it may not have been the wisest thing to do, such a demand sometimes required leaving the relative safety of the underwater kingdom. In order to escape the harshness of the war, the young mermyd would often take his charges up to the surface to visit their friends there._

XxX

Allura breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped out of her slippers and onto the sand, curling her toes in the soft, grainy stuff. Stepping out of her shoes was always the moment she knew she could really relax, just shuck off all of her cares and leave them up at the castle so she could be with her true friends – and today she had a surprise for them.

"Come on. Come on!" Matt cheered eagerly, tugging on Allura's hand to hurry her along the beach, down to the little cave that was their sanctuary. The Betwixt was a place for affairs of state, so when it was just them and their friends, they'd needed to find somewhere else to meet. That somewhere had turned out to be a small seaside cave nestled among the cliff faces – a place with enough dry rock for the humans to sit on during low tide and enough water for their mermyd companions to be comfortable. It was the perfect spot.

And today it was going to become even more crowded.

Allura watched her step more than she normally would, mindful of the tiny bundle in her arms. As careful as she'd promised to be, her father and Matt's parents had only allowed today's expedition when they'd heard she would be meeting up with Shiro. Well, she would just have to prove herself as trustworthy as her best friend was. So despite her own eagerness, she made absolutely certain to watch each step as she began to climb the spray-soaked rocks toward their cave.

Matt was still bouncing excitedly from rock to rock when she finally managed to make her way into the cave with her bundle. She was relieved to see that they'd been the first to arrive, giving her ample time to get settled on one of the more level stretches of stone floor. All the while, the tightly wrapped bundle in her arms began to squirm all the more.

As always, the first sign of their friends' arrival was Shiro's head peeking just above the water, his face rising no higher than his eyes, just in case there was danger and he needed to make a quick retreat. When he saw that everything was as it should be, he lifted his head properly out of the water, offering Allura a smile before beginning the unpleasant task of coughing up the water in his lungs so that he might switch to his body's air-breathing system.

The whole process took only a few minutes, but Allura always thought it looked painful. One nice thing about the Betwixt was that there was no need for this whole switch. Once Shiro had gotten himself situated, he gave the other little ones permission to come above water, one at a time so he could help them all through the process.

Hunk was first to come up, as he always had the most trouble adjusting. By the time Shiro had gotten him breathing air, the little mermyd needed to swim to the rocky shore to lie down beside Allura, who was sitting with her bare feet just in the water.

"There we are, Hunk. All right?" she asked him, reaching over a hand to pat his shoulder. Hunk rolled onto his side and offered her a tired smile.

Lance was the next to surface. As usual, the two-year-old prince tried to behave like vomiting up water didn't bother him, but Allura could see the hint of exhaustion in his playful smile as he swam closer to her, trying to get a look at the wriggling bundle in her arms.

"What'sit? What'sit?" the little one asked, jumping as far out of the water as his small body could manage.

"You'll find out," the princess said with a knowing smile as Shiro helped Shay out of the water, holding her up while she coughed and expelled water. At four, she and Rax were a little better able to handle the process.

"So what's this big news?" Shiro asked once Rax was up out of the water. "You said we had to come up as soon as possible."

Allura was about to respond when the bundle in her arms answered for her with a particularly loud baby burble. Sick of her confinement, one-month-old Katelyn Holt furiously kicked her arms and legs free of the blankets her mother had wrapped her in, waving them in the air just to prove she could.

All of the young mermyds gasped in awe at the sight of the baby, Shiro the only one among them who'd actually seen a human baby before.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Katelyn Holt, Matt's new baby sister," Allura introduced with pride, holding the baby girl up for them to see, despite her wriggling.

"They finally decided she was old enough to come out?" Shiro asked. Of course they'd all known that Kate had been born; Matt had been able to talk of nothing else. They just hadn't known when they'd be allowed to meet the new baby.

"Yes, they did," Allura said, giving an awkward smile as she struggled to hold onto the baby girl.

"Shiro, lookit! Lookit!" Lance squealed, pointing excitedly before doing several loops through the water. Then he came up to the edge and lifted himself up beside Allura, trying to get a better look at Kate.

Allura turned the wily little girl so that Lance could see, but Kate herself was not so cooperative. Seeming to turn her nose up, the baby made a displeased sort of sound and turned her face away, burying it in Allura's stomach.

Lance's expression immediately soured at the baby's snub. Turning his own nose up, he swam to another part of the cave, calling over his shoulder, "Fine. Don't like her either."

"Lance, you need to give her a chance. She's just a baby," Shiro scolded lightly.

"Mm-mm," the young prince snapped back, not looking at any of them.

"Well, if you're going to sulk, you'll be doing it alone. The rest of us came to see Katelyn," Shiro informed him.

Lance just huffed, still keeping his face turned away.

"All right. If that's your decision," Shiro said, making a show of looking away from the little prince, though Allura could see that his attention was still half at the corner of his eye, always making sure that Lance was all right.

"Can she walk?" Shay asked as she and her twin moved in closer.

"Oh, no. Certainly not. She's not even old enough to crawl yet. Humans don't start walking until they're about a year old," Allura explained gently as she extricated a strand of her hair from Kate's sticky grip.

"So...you carry her 'round 'til she can walk?" Hunk asked, wide-eyed.

"Well...yes," Allura said, unable to come up with any other response.

"That's stupid," Lance grumped at them from his section of the cave.

"You were a baby once, too, Lance," Shiro pointed out.

"Didn' hafta be carried everywhere," the young mermyd argued, lifting his tail to irritably slap small waves against the stone wall.

"Why can't she walk?" Hunk asked, scooting a little closer to Allura. "Don't her legs work?"

"Well...I suppose not," the princess answered after thinking about it a moment. "Human babies aren't as developed as merbabies are when they're born. Kate's body isn't strong enough to support her weight yet. She needs time to get stronger before she can swim and run with Matt and I."

"Does that mean someone had to carry _you_ around when you were a baby?" Shay asked.

"That's exactly what it means," she answered with a laugh.

"I don't believe it," Rax stated with a shake of his head.

"Believe it. I remember the days when Matt was too small to walk," Shiro told them, winking as he nodded toward the five-year-old, who grinned and waved at his mer friends. Hunk, Rax, and Shay all stared at him in amazement.

"But how do you escape if there's danger?" Shay wondered.

"Hope somebody loves you enough to carry you away," Matt said as he gently patted the tiny curls on his baby sister's head. "She's loud and annoying sometimes, but I like her."

"Can we see her feet?" Hunk asked suddenly.

"Hunk, that's not polite," Shiro scolded him. "You shouldn't just ask to see parts of other people's bodies."

Allura laughed at this, despite the sudden redness in Shiro's cheeks. "It's okay, Shiro. They've just never seen a baby's feet before. I'm sure Kate won't mind if you look at them, but there's nothing I can do if she won't be still long enough for you to see," she informed the little ones, carefully laying Kate down on the small stretch of rock between her and Hunk.

Once she was properly free of Allura's arms, Kate began to wave her arms and legs in the air all the more wildly, shoving away her blankets and kicking up the tiny dressing gown her mother had placed her in that morning. For all Hunk tried, he couldn't seem to get ahold of either of her feet. It was almost like Kate knew what he was after and was doing her level best to play keep away with the young mermyd.

When Hunk finally managed to snare one of Kate's little feet, she squealed with delight, sticking a single tiny fist in her mouth and gumming at it. Hunk took the moment of victory to examine each tiny toe. He still couldn't seem to make sense of it, but then he noticed the way Kate was giggling and took a second to tickle her foot before finally letting it go.

"Hi, Kate," the two-year-old said, waving at her. The baby waved her foot at him in response.

"Guess you got a new best friend now, huh," Lance huffed at him from his sulking area. For a moment, Hunk looked really hurt, but then he shook his head and slipped easily back into the water, finning his way over to the young prince. Matt also jumped into the water to swim after them.

"It's okay, Lance. She didn't like me at first either, and I'm her _brother._ "

"Oh, my," Allura started with a small chuckle, figuring she probably shouldn't listen in on the little boys' conversation, but she turned her attention back to little Kate just in time to see her flip over into the water.

Or at least the baby girl would have done if Shiro hadn't been right there to catch her. Allura didn't even have time to cry out in fear before her best friend was cradling Kate in his arms not an inch from the water.

"Whoa there, little one," Shiro soothed, his own voice just on the verge of fear. "I know the ocean's a fun place to be, but I don't think you can swim yet. It'll be a little while before you can join us in the water. This'll have to do for now."

Allura breathed a sigh of relief as her heart rate slowly returned to normal. Shiro had saved the day yet again. So much for her plan to prove she was just as trustworthy as he was.

"I shouldn't have set her down in the first place. Thank you, Takashi."

"No trouble," he said, his smile shifting from Kate up to her, causing Allura's own uncertain smile to lift a bit at the corners. "I guess Kate'll be just as much a handful as Matt was."

"I wouldn't doubt it. I can take her back if you like."

"No, it's fine. I can hold her a bit longer," he said, a different sort of smile moving onto his face as he looked back down at Kate. It was the look Allura saw in his eyes whenever he was watching Shay and the boys play. Whatever came, the princess could see that Katelyn was now just as much under Shiro's protection as all the others were.

And Kate seemed just as taken with her new guardian as all the others were. She smiled and laughed for him, cuddling up close against his chest without squirming too much, but she did eventually begin to get grumpy as she got sleepy, fighting to stay awake against the gentle rocking of Shiro's arms and the rising motion of the tides. But when she started to whimper, Shiro countered with the weapon it seemed no one could resist – his voice. Rocking Kate in the cradle of his arms, Shiro began to sing to her.

 _Once upon a time_

 _And long ago_

 _I heard someone singing_

 _Soft and low_

 _Now when day is done_

 _And night is near_

 _I recall this song_

 _I used to hear_

As Allura listened to the lullaby, she found herself leaning closer to Shiro, having to remind herself not to lean so far over as to just fall in the water. She'd done that before and interrupted his song. She'd never been able to figure out what, but there had always been something about Shiro's singing that made her feel at home...safe and happy...content...

 _My child, my very own_

 _Don't be afraid; you're not alone_

 _Sleep until the dawn_

 _For all is well_

The princess wasn't sure when during the song the other boys had drifted back over, but at some point they had all swum back over to hear Shiro's lullaby. Not even Lance's fiercest grudge could stand up to Shiro's singing.

 _Long ago this song_

 _Was sung to me_

 _Now it's just a_

 _Distant melody_

 _Somewhere from the past_

 _I used to know_

 _Once upon a time_

 _And long ago_

By the time the song had come to an end, Kate had fallen asleep in Shiro's arms. Matt had climbed up out of the water and the four young mermyds were drifting at the surface with distant smiles on their faces. Reluctant though Shiro seemed to relinquish the baby girl, he looked up at Allura with an apologetic smile.

"Well, looks like I've just about put everyone to sleep. I'd hate to cut it short today, but I should probably take these little fish home before I lose them altogether."

"Of course. We'll also be needing to get these two into some dry clothes before they catch colds."

"That's silly, Allura," Matt mumbled sleepily. "Fairies don't get sick."

"Maybe not, but you're not _all_ fairy, Matthew Holt," she reminded him with a gentle poke to his tummy.

"All right, everyone, say your goodbyes," Shiro told them. The twins waved to Matt and Allura, and Shay swam over to press a light kiss to Kate's tiny head before slipping beneath the water with her brother. Hunk did the same, whispering a small 'goodbye' before following suit.

That left just Lance still at the surface, waving to Allura and Matt before turning to look at the baby in Shiro's arms with uncertainty. Then, deciding to take the chance, he swam up and dropped another light kiss on her head. When Kate yawned widely in her sleep and shifted in Shiro's arms, Lance had to stifle a pleased giggle.

"See? Not so bad, is she," Shiro said quietly. The young prince shook his head, grinning happily as he also slipped beneath the water.

"Goodbye, Kate," Shiro said, also kissing her forehead before passing her up to Allura. "Don't give the princess too much trouble."

"We'll see who causes trouble. See you soon?" Allura asked her friend as she climbed to her feet.

"As soon as possible," Shiro answered with a nod and a smile, and as always, he didn't duck back beneath the water until she and Matt had climbed out of the cave.

XxX

(A/N) All righty, shall we keep going?


	2. Sunny Days and Starry Nights

(A/N) Well, ask and ye shall receive, as they say. Glad everyone's enjoying the story so far.

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 2: Sunny Days and Starry Nights_

When Shiro drifted wearily into his chamber at the end of the day's training, he had every intention of curling up in his hammock and sleeping until dinner. He didn't yet know that wasn't going to be happening, but when he first started to nestle his battered body into the kelp rope netting, he was still dreaming of the coming nap.

Training to become a member of the Palace Guard was no easy task. It was more than just combat training. There was training in strategy, espionage, political science, and diplomacy in addition to standard schooling – training of the mind as well as the body. And apart from the rigorous discipline of the Guard, Shiro still had his responsibilities to Lance, Rax, and Shay. Whenever he wasn't training, he was with them. At this exact moment, he knew they would all be with Gyrgan, but just as soon as the evening meal came around they would be in his charge once more. So for a few minutes, maybe even a whole hour, he would take this bit of time to himself-

"Shiro?" Hunk's quiet, hesitant voice tugged at his ear just as he was drifting off to sleep. Shiro sighed with a rush of water from his mouth, not opening his eyes as he shifted in his hammock.

"Yes, Hunk?"

"I'm sorry. Were you sleeping?" the six-year-old asked, and Shiro could just picture the way his lower lip would tremble with sorrow at the thought of having disturbed him.

"No, little one. Just resting. What did you need?" he asked, still not opening his eyes.

"Well...the Star Lantern Festival's still going on."

"Mm, yes. I know," he said sleepily. They'd had to swim twice as fast to work around the thousands of festival-goers present in the city during training today. "And?"

"And Gyrgan said we can go if you'll take us!" Lance's excited voice joined in on the conversation, and when Shiro finally opened his eyes, it was to the sight of the young prince zipping about the room like a dolphin high on tangleweed. Hunk, on the other hand, waited beside his hammock with his clenched hands held up near his face as he anxiously awaited an answer.

"I don't know," Shiro teased, rolling away from them in his hammock as if he hadn't already decided to take them. Exhaustion be damned. "It's been a _very_ long day. I don't think I can swim another meter."

"But- but- but _Shiro,_ " Lance whined desperately as he swam down to him, "what about the games? And the toys?"

"And the food?" Hunk cut in.

"And the performers! You _love_ the kelp whip dancers."

"The shrimp pasties. And the nori cones. Ooh...and the stuffed clams," Hunk said, mouth hanging open slightly as he dreamed of all the delicious foods.

"What about the glow works? Don't you wanna see those? It'll be so much fun! Let's go. _Pleease?_ " Lance begged him.

"Heh, all right. All right already," Shiro conceded as he rolled out of his hammock, shaking the exhaustion from his shoulders. "Let's go find Rax and Shay."

"Yay!" the two boys cheered together, and that was how Shiro found himself swimming through the streets of Arus with a pod of squealing young mermyds in tow.

The Time of the Star Lanterns had been a tradition of mermydkind for time out of mind. It was a reminder that their ancestors had once walked on land, among the humans, and that they were all still connected in some fundamental way. The festivals and feast times had formed as a way to celebrate the light of the most distant stars in the sky far above still being able to reach their world, no matter how deep beneath the waves it was.

People had been taking even more comfort from the Time of the Star Lanterns in recent years than they had in a long while, seeking some sort of balance in the world with the wars happening. But all of that was far and away from Shiro and his little pod. He knew the queen kept them away from things intentionally. The only difference he really noticed was the thinning number of Guardsmen as more and more were called away to fight. Only last night a fresh cadre had been called out to bolster the forces defending the Moon's Gate Canyon. He also knew it would be his place to join them one day, once he'd become a proper Guardsman. But for now he was taking the little ones around the festival, winning toys for Shay, watching Lance and Rax play games, and seeing that Hunk was never without a box of nori cones.

If he hadn't been through a full day of training already, he probably would've enjoyed himself a little more, maybe played a game or two for himself or had more to eat apart from the small scallop wrap he got for himself, but he was really just there to make sure his four charges had fun and stayed safe. Though by the end of the night, he was worried to admit that he might have lost two of them.

"Where did Lance and Rax get to?" he asked Shay and Hunk as he finally escaped the food line, passing them both boxes of coral cakes. Both parties glanced at each other before looking guiltily toward opposite ends of the street.

"We don't know," Shay answered with a shrug, still not looking up at him.

"Don't give me that, you two. They were here just a minute ago. Where are they?" he pressed sternly, turning his attention to Hunk, knowing he'd have more luck getting the younger mermyd to talk. "Hunk?"

"I...don't look at me. I don't know anything. They're not here."

"I can see that. What I _can't_ see is where they _are._ You know."

"No- no, I don't," he protested, gaze shifting away every time Shiro tried to look him in the eye.

"Hunk, look at me," the fourteen-year-old pressed, keeping his tone firm without scaring the little boy. Hunk slowly looked up at him. "Whatever they told you doesn't matter. They should've told _me_ where they were going. Something might happen to them if they're off on their own. You don't want that, do you?"

"Well...no," Hunk answered, looking miserable.

"Then you need to tell me where they went."

"But...they just- it's only-"

"Hunk, don't say anything. _Please_ ," Shay begged him. "Just a little longer."

"Shay, if you can't-"

"Shiro!" Lance's small but carrying voice suddenly sounded over the noise of the crowds. Shiro whirled around to see the two youngest princes quickly finning their way back to them through the crush of mermyds, looking very excited. Lance was clutching a package tightly against his chest. The parcel wasn't very large, but the way the young prince struggled to keep his small fingers around it made it look much bigger than it actually was.

"Lance! Rax!" he shouted, shooting frantically toward the two princes. Before either could say anything, he'd seized them in his arms, hugging them fiercely against his chest. "Why did you disappear like that? You scared me," he said sharply.

"S- sorry," Lance mumbled, expression falling as Shiro pulled back from them.

"Don't ever do that again. If you want to go somewhere, just tell me and I'll take you. Okay?"

Lance's lower lip trembled and, for a moment, he looked like he might burst into tears. "But...we just wanted it to be a surprise," he said as he meekly offered Shiro the package.

Shiro stopped short at this, staring down at the package for a moment before taking it in his own hands. "What...what did you..." he couldn't quite get himself to ask as he fumbled with the woven moss wrapping. When he finally managed to get it open, he found a small pearl-handled dagger nestled in the soft wrappings. It was one he'd admired in Swirn's shop – occasionally thought about getting for himself.

"Happy birthday, Shiro," the young mermyds chorused together, all of them looking penitent, but a little excited at the same time.

"Oh," he mumbled, glancing stupidly between them and the dagger for several moments. He hadn't _really_ forgotten his own birthday again had he? Sometimes it fell during the festival days, but it was more often after. Only...today...

"That _was_ today...wasn't it."

"Uh-huh. Mama was going to surprise you with a party today, but then that new attack happened," Lance said. "Plaxy said you really liked that knife, so we wanted to get it for you."

"And Swirn actually sold it to a six and eight year old?" Shiro asked them with an amused raised eyebrow.

"Aw, she knew who it was for," Lance said with a grin. Shiro didn't doubt that it was also due to the fact that nobody above or below the waves could resist the little prince when he turned on the guppy eyes.

"Well...thank you, all of you, for this. I'll keep it close always. But the next time you want to surprise me, you'll have to come up with something that doesn't involves scaring me half to death. Deal?" he asked, looking at each of them in turn.

"Deal," Rax spoke for all of them, being the oldest.

"The surprises aren't done yet, either," Shay squealed, as if she just couldn't contain herself another minute. "Allura and Matt and Kate sent something, too!"

"I assume you don't have to disappear to get it?" Shiro asked her.

"No. You'll see when we get back home."

"What about the glow works? Do we still get to see the glow works?" Lance asked, looking worried that Shiro might say no.

"I hope you don't think I planned to eat these coral cakes all by myself," Shiro responded, handing the young princes the two boxes he still had tucked under his arm. "I'd say you've learned your lesson for today. So are you going to lead the way?"

"Right! Follow me!" Lance declared, holding his sweet box aloft like a scepter and finning his way through the slowly migrating crowd. Shiro took up the rear of the group, smiling as the others moved in a knot behind the youngest member of their pod.

Slowly but surely, the festival goers were making their way out to the kelp forests that skirted the city, lying between its boundaries and the crystal dome that enclosed Arus. As with the lattices throughout the city, the mermyds could find kelp strands to situate themselves in in order to be able to watch the glow works display. And even though the bioluminescent lamps that lit the city were dimmed in order to simulate the cycle of night up on the surface, that dimmed light could still interfere with the show, so it was better to get some distance from the city for a better view.

Shiro was amazed at how far into the forest Lance managed to swim. Really, it was only when Hunk started to tire that the young prince settled on a small copse of kelp for them to get situated in. Once each of his charges had gotten comfortable, the Guardsman trainee made sure to pick a spot where he could still keep an eye on all of them. It wasn't long after they'd settled that the darkened waters overhead began to light up.

Schools of trained squid swam into formation above the kelp forest, creating patterns in blue, green, pink, white, and red as they swirled through the water. They painted pictures of the many different animals that inhabited the waters around Arus – swarms of jellyfish, massive schools of fish moving through the water as one, only to be broken up by pods of whales as they hunted for their meals, and playful groups of dolphins dancing on the waves and through the air.

The squid created images of young mermyds at play, and of their parents at festival time, dancing and laughing – images of joy and happy times. Shiro couldn't help grinning throughout, his attention divided between the actual show and his four young charges enjoying it.

"Ooh! The seahorses! The seahorses! Look at the seahorses!" Shay squealed.

"The Starlight Caves," Hunk gasped in awe. "Pretty."

For their finale, the squid formed themselves into a dance of the sun and the clouds through the sky, moving through a tableau of the day before moving into an equally beautiful image of the night, pinpricks of white light simulating the scatterings of stars in the evening sky.

Rax gave his own gasp of amazement at the sight. "Shiro? Shiro, what is it?"

"It's the moon," he explained patiently, because of course they'd never seen it. He'd only been up at night a handful of times himself and they never had been. It was much too dangerous for the little ones to be out in open water at night.

"That's really what it looks like?" Lance asked, sounding like he wanted to be skeptical but still awed by the sight.

"Well...something like that," Shiro conceded, remembering a night when he'd met up with Allura in the caves. "The glow works can't really tell you how big it is, or how bright. It lights the dark in a way nothing down here really can," he recounted.

"It's still pretty," Shay insisted, gazing dreamily up at the bioluminescent display.

"Will we see it someday?" Hunk asked him.

"Someday, yes."

"Why not now?" Lance pressed.

"When you're older, Lance, I promise. Just as soon as you're all old enough, I'll take you to see the moon," he told them, and it seemed to pacify the small pod, for they were content to watch the end of the display. Instead of heading back as soon as it had finished, though, Shiro decided to wait, hoping that the crowds might disperse a little more.

Lance, meanwhile, was putting on a show of his own for his siblings and best friend, imitating the clicks and trilled whistles of a dolphin at play. Swimming energetically around the group, he went up to each one of them and nosed at them – a dolphin's invitation to a game. Hunk and Shay were just starting to get into the game of pretend when Shiro heard the faint sound of a desperate cry.

The trainee quickly hushed the four young mermyds, holding a hand up for silence. "Did you hear that?"

This time, the cry came to them a little clearer, more insistent than before.

"What is it?" Shay was the one to ask, looking like she wanted to hide behind Shiro, but pressing out beyond their kelp strands.

"I don't know. All of you stay here," Shiro ordered them. "I'm going to go find out," he said as he disentangled himself from the kelp.

"But Shiro-" Hunk started to protest.

"Stay," Shiro said firmly. "I have to make sure it's safe."

Leaving no room for them to argue, Shiro headed off through the kelp in the direction of the cries. As he drew closer, he began to pick out distinct voices from the cacophony.

"Go ahead and cry, fin face."

"Yeah. Nobody cares about a disgusting halfbreed like you."

The vicious words were followed by yet more cries, weaker this time.

"What made you think we'd want you in our city? Huh? Why were you stupid enough to come here?"

Another cry, followed by a whimpered, "Who...who'd care about what _you_ think?"

" _You_ should, punk; because _we're_ the ones who get to decide if you leave here or not."

"Doesn't matter. No one would miss me."

"You know, it's no fun when you agree with everything I say."

"Pick one, dammit!" the scrappy little voice bit back, and when Shiro finally came upon what was happening, he only _wished_ he could say he was shocked by the horrific sight.

Two merboys had another one tied up among some of the kelp strands and they were laying into him with their fists and tails. Shiro could see _why_ they were ganging up on the defenseless younger boy, but that didn't make it in _any_ way excusable.

"Hey!" he shouted as he broke in on them. "Leave him alone!"

When the two delinquents saw him approaching, they quickly swam off into the forest, leaving their victim drifting helplessly among the kelp. Carefully as Shiro tried to swim up to him, the little boy still flinched when he drew near, clearly expecting pain.

"It's all right," the young merman attempted to soothe. "You're safe now. I won't hurt you."

The expression in the little boy's eyes as he looked up at him was heartbreaking – like he _wanted_ to believe those words, but was bracing for an old lie just the same.

"Why not?"

Shiro gave a dejected sigh as he took in the boy's appearance. His skin wasn't the lavender color of the enemy, but he did possess the eel-like tail, covered with an almost hypnotic pattern of black and red scales. His little fingers ended in the stubby beginnings of lethal claws. He didn't have the yellow eyes, possessing instead a more typical purple color, but the telling fins stuck out rather prominently from his small head, proclaiming the boy's heritage for all the world to see.

This boy was part Galra.

"I won't hurt you because you're only a child," Shiro reassured the young mermyd as he cut him free of his kelp bindings. "You had no control over the circumstances that made you. Are you...all alone?" he asked, regretting the question even as he was asking it. What often happened in these cases was that a mermyd was attacked by a Galra warrior. The Galra wanted nothing to do with their halfblood offspring and the mothers didn't usually survive giving birth to them. So they were cast out to fend for themselves. Not many of them made it. To survive to this age, not much older than Lance or Hunk, spoke to this boy's strength.

However, once Shiro had cut him free of the kelp, the only response the boy could manage to his question was a nod. For a moment, he attempted to swim away, but he seemed too exhausted, suffering from the beating he'd taken. When he began to drift toward the forest floor, Shiro quickly moved forward to take him in his arms.

"All right there. It's going to be all right," Shiro repeated, cradling the young mermyd against his chest. "What's your name, little one?"

"K- Keith," the boy returned vaguely, blinking sick, tired eyes up at Shiro.

"It's good to meet you, Keith. My name's Takashi Shirogane. Most people just call me Shiro, though."

"Shiro?" Keith repeated, and the way he shivered in the young merman's arms left him fighting the urge to use some of his healing magic.

 _Remember the queen's rule. This isn't life and death. Not yet._

"Shiro?" Lance's hesitant voice suddenly touched his ear. Shiro turned back to see his four charges emerging from the forest. Shaking his head, he offered them a pointed look.

"I thought I told you all to stay where you were."

"We were worried. It's not dangerous. Is it?" Hunk asked as he looked around, like he suddenly wasn't sure.

"No. The danger's gone."

"But...what about _him?_ " Rax pressed, the only one of the four still hanging back. "He's-"

"He's a little boy. No different from the rest of you," Shiro cut him off, perhaps a little more sharply than he should have, but he was _not_ going to have a helpless child hearing talk like that.

"He's all right," Shay said softly, but as she, Lance, and Hunk drew closer, they couldn't help noticing the way Keith shrank against Shiro. Stopping short, the three glanced at each other for several moments before Lance's face lit with an idea.

"Are you hungry?" the young prince asked, holding out his sweets box as he slowly swam closer. "I've still got a few coral cakes left."

Shiro smiled warmly at Lance before looking down at Keith. For a moment, the young mermyd's eyebrows knit together in confusion, but when the prince's only response was to offer the box more insistently with an even wider smile, Keith couldn't seem to help but let the corners of his own mouth turn up in a questioning smile. But the tiny exchange lasted only a moment before Keith lost consciousness altogether.

Shiro swore softly under his breath. Whether it was the beating, the malnutrition, the sudden shock of kindness, or some combination of the three that had caused it, he suddenly wasn't sure the little mermyd would be with them much longer.

"Hunk, we need to get him back to your father. I know I usually let you all lead, but I need you to follow me this time. We can't stop for anything. Do you understand?" he asked them, and the urgency in his tone must have gotten through to the little group because they all nodded, quickly falling in behind him as he began to fin his way back through the forest with Keith clutched tightly in his arms.

 _Just stay with me, little one. I'm going to get you help; I promise._

"Shiro?" Lance's small voice broke into his thoughts once more, clearly beginning to tire from the punishing pace they were making toward the city. "Maybe- maybe you should sing to him?"

" _What?_ " the young merman asked, barely resisting the urge to stop and look back at the young prince.

"I mean- you always sing to _us_ when we're sad or sick or don't feel good. Maybe if you sing to him, he'll feel better?" Lance suggested.

Shiro had to resist the urge to laugh at the little prince's hopeful naivety. If only things were as simple as that. Except...maybe...if it would make his own charges feel better... and if there were even the slightest chance Keith might still be able to hear him...didn't he have to try? Reaching back into the past, he drew forth another of his mother's old lullabies – a song of hope.

 _If you feel lost_

 _And on your own_

 _You're never alone, you know_

 _Just think of your friends_

 _The ones who care_

 _They all will be waiting there_

 _With love to share_

 _And your heart will lead you home_

In spite of everything Shiro did to suppress it, he could feel the icy lightning tinge of his power threading through the notes of his song. It would keep the boy alive, but Shiro didn't doubt the queen would notice the one or two new strands of white on his head when she returned.

Didn't matter. Had to keep Keith going.

 _There'll come a day when you're losing your way_

 _And you won't know where you belong_

 _They say that home is where the heart is_

 _So follow your heart and know that you can't go wrong_

He didn't see the city as it slipped by, didn't hear the horrified reactions to the child he was carrying, hardly felt the burn of his gills from the rush of water over them. None of it was important. None of it would save this small life.

 _If you feel lost_

 _And on your own_

 _You're never alone, you know_

 _Just think of your friends_

 _The ones who care_

 _They all will be waiting there_

 _With love to share_

 _And your heart will lead you home_

Shiro didn't stop singing until he'd deposited Keith safely in Gyrgan's arms, gills flapping desperately to pull in fresh water despite the pain in them from the overexertion.

Even so, he smiled. Each life he managed to save, no matter how small, was a burden lifted from his soul.

XxX

 _Whether it was the healing magic or the singing, who could say? Either way, the young half mermyd survived. The queen's physician was able to bring him back from the edge of death, and even if he didn't begin to thrive right away, he was alive_ – _inarguably better than the alternative._

 _At first, the boy was obstinately mute, speaking only to the young merman who'd saved his life and spending time only with the trainee's small band of charges. He wasn't often exposed to the palace talk that went on about him, but he could've easily guessed at it, given the life he'd lived so far. Many in the palace were unnerved at the notion of an even_ _ **part**_ _Galra child living among them. Some were afraid of the attachment forming between the child and the youngest royal siblings. Others insisted it was the start of a peace between mermyds and Galra, that the young boy could prove an example of what was possible._

 _For his part, the young trainee treated this new young one no different from his other charges. Given his own choice, he would've protected the boy from all the expectations that suddenly seemed to rest on his shoulders, both good and bad._

 _With nowhere else to go, it was decided that the young halfblood would be taken into the Guard to train as one of its members when he was old enough. This decision only made the cries of the naysayers louder, so his self-appointed guardian had to work twice as hard to keep those grumblings from the young boy's ears. It wasn't long before he started taking the young mermyd on outings to the surface with the rest of his charges._

XxX

"I still don't see why we have to go up there at all," Keith mumbled petulantly, sticking close to Shiro's side while the other four swam merrily through the water around them.

"You want to see where we go, don't you?" Hunk asked as he zipped by.

"I guess," Keith returned, not quite looking at any of them. He hadn't had much interest in leaving the city ever since Shiro had carried him within its walls. Maybe the other children were blissfully unaware of it, but the outside world was a dangerous place. Except...he couldn't deny feeling lonely whenever Shiro took them to the surface to see their friends. So, in spite of his fear, he'd finally decided to join them on one of the outings. That didn't mean, however, that he was any less willing to make his displeasure known.

"Don't be a scaredy crab!" Lance teased mildly, poking him as he swam by. "Nothing's going to hurt you."

Keith stuck his tongue out at the younger boy before shaking his head and drawing closer to Shiro. "I'm _not_ a scaredy crab. It's just...not fun out here," was all the explanation he could manage. How could he explain to someone who didn't know...?

Shay swam up to him before Lance could make another pass. "Don't worry. Matt and Kate are fun, and Allura's nice. You'll see when we get there."

Keith shivered despondently, practically cleaving to Shiro, but really, if he could trust no one else, he knew he could trust his friends. Perhaps there were more friends waiting in this new world? Though he couldn't deny how nervous he was getting as the water around them continued to get lighter. He knew they were heading up toward that thing called the sun, but what did he really know about the sun? There was only so much one who had never experienced fire before could know about it.

"I know it's frightening right now," Shiro said quietly after the others had swum ahead, "but there's really nothing to be afraid of. You'll see."

Keith didn't respond, just kept as close to Shiro as he could. The water was a truly bright blue now, almost luminous. He hadn't known there could _be_ this much light, not without the lamps. It was almost starting to hurt his eyes.

"This is it," Shiro told him as they swam in among a tangled spill of rocks and algae, moving through to a slightly less bright area. "Do you remember what I told you?"

Keith nodded faintly, eyes fixed on the layer that separated water from air.

"Now I'm going to go up first. I'll be right there if you need me. You ready?"

Again, Keith nodded, letting Shiro know it was okay for him to go up. The next moment, the older mermyd's head slipped through the barrier, into the world above.

While waiting nervously for Shiro's signal, Keith glanced around, catching the occasional sight of one of his friends' tails. There was the flash of Lance's blue and red tail, and then a quick glimpse of Hunk's gold and brown fins. He caught sight of the gray and silvery iridescent scales of one of the twins' tails, but he couldn't get enough of a look to see who it was. They'd all done this before and lived. Why shouldn't he? When Shiro finally gave him the signal to come up, Keith took in a gulp of water through his gills and quickly thrust his head up through the barrier before he could talk himself out of it.

The young half mermyd's first instinct upon surfacing was to snap his eyes shut. Too bright! It was _much_ too bright. How did these humans not go blind?

The next thing he realized was that his gills had become less than useless. They flapped desperately for several moments, but there was no water to pull in. He remembered what Shiro had told him, but how did it work? How was he supposed to _breathe?_

"Keith, you've got to cough," Shiro urged him, holding him above the water while he struggled. "You won't be able to breathe air until you get rid of the water in you. Just push it out. Let it go."

It took Keith several panicked moments to obey Shiro's orders. It felt like expelling his water was the exact _opposite_ of what he wanted to do, but in the end, he made his mouth cooperate, feeling the strange sensation of water flowing _down_ his face.

Normally when he exhaled, the used water would simply be expelled from his mouth. But now, as the air rushed in to replace the water, he could feel the burn of it down his throat, in his lungs and in his nose. Once the process had begun, it didn't take much effort to cough, hacking until he'd cleared all the water from his body. Shiro held him up all the while.

"It's so difficult the first time, isn't it," an unfamiliar voice soothed. "I can't promise you it becomes more pleasant, but it does at least get easier to do."

"Feel up to opening your eyes?" Shiro asked him.

Keith shook his head, much harder than he meant to without the resistance of the water. "Mm-mm. Too bright. Too bright."

"Ah. Maybe it'll help if we bring you a little further in," Shiro suggested, and as they moved easily through the water Keith noticed how the brightness on his eyelids seemed to lessen. When they came to a stop again, Shiro prompted him with, "Okay, give it another try."

Still nervous, Keith tentatively squinted out of his right eye. It was still much brighter than he was used to, but it wasn't nearly as bad. Slowly opening his eye all the way, he gradually allowed the left eye to follow suit, taking in his surroundings with furtive glances.

Really, it wasn't all that different from a cave underwater. Though when Keith glanced back toward the mouth of the cave, he found he couldn't look directly at it for long. That must be where the light was coming from.

The sun.

"Doing a little better?" the unfamiliar voice asked him. When he followed the voice to its source, he found himself looking at a lady sitting on a dry section of the cave floor. Well...maybe _lady_ wasn't the right word. She couldn't have been all that much different in age from Shiro, though she still looked regal sitting upon the stone floor in her simple white dress, her white hair cascading down her back and framing her sharp features. Keith nodded slowly as he looked her over, only just remembering she'd asked him a question.

"Keith, this is Her Royal Highness Allura, Lady of the House of Leontes, Princess of the kingdom of Altea and of the Seven Isles," Shiro introduced, and at her full title the princess' crystalline eyes narrowed as she mock glared at him.

"Where's this title nonsense coming from all of a sudden?" she jibed at him. "You'll frighten the poor boy. You really can just call me Allura," she assured him.

"And you can call _me_ Matt," a new voice jumped in as its owner plopped down beside Allura, human legs dangling in the water.

For several moments, all Keith could manage to do was stare. If he didn't know Allura for a human, he could've easily mistaken her for a mermyd with the way she sat with her legs folded beneath her. Matt, on the other hand, a boy who couldn't have been much older than him, was proudly splashing those human legs in the water. As much as the half mermyd tried _not_ to stare, he had never seen human feet before. Without thought, the first words to tumble out of his mouth were, "Can you even swim?"

At this, Matt didn't seem to know _what_ to feel. Likely it was a tipping point between insulted and amused. When the scale finally tipped in favor of amused, the older boy grinned before diving gracefully off the rocks into the water. He resurfaced just a few feet away, shaking the water from his hair before offering Keith a teasing grin.

"'Course I can swim. I can even keep up with Hunk on a good day."

"I'd just like to point out that I hadn't eaten that day," Hunk said, his own grin only slightly grumpy as he splashed the human boy.

"So what you're saying is we should race again now that your belly's full," Matt teased.

"Yeah, that'd be fun!" Lance cheered.

"Race, race, race!" another new voice cheered. Within moments, a new human had appeared from behind Allura, a smaller version of Matt with slightly longer hair. "Wanna see new kid race!"

Allura chuckled softly at the little human's words. "Oh, dear. Sorry about her. Keith, this is Kate Holt, Matt's younger sister."

Neither Keith nor Kate said anything at first. For several minutes, they both just stared at each other. Kate was the one to finally break the deadlock by walking toward him and asking, "Can you fly with these?" before grabbing at his headfins with both hands.

"Hey!" Keith snarled as he yanked himself free of the girl's grip, retreating behind Shiro.

"Kate, no!" Allura scolded the young girl, pulling her back from the water's edge. "You can't just grab people. It isn't nice."

"You grab me," the little girl couldn't seem to help pointing out.

"Yes, because you did something you shouldn't have. You must apologize to Keith," the princess said firmly.

Kate glanced back at Keith with a look of annoyance before muttering, "Sorry." But this was quickly followed up with, "Didn' answer."

Matt and Allura began to scold her again, but Keith didn't really hear what they said. For several moments, all he could really seem to focus on was the earnest curiosity in the young human's eyes. Finally having to admit to his own ignorance, he asked, "What's 'fly'?"

"Oh, Keith," Shiro started after several quiet chuckles. "Well, you know how mermyds swim in water and humans walk on land?"

"Uh-huh."

"There are creatures called birds that can move through the air the same way we move through the water."

"Fairies, too!" Kate insisted.

"Of course. Our little pigeon's completely captivated by anything with wings. She thinks she should be flying, too, just because she has a bit of fey blood," Allura said, reaching forward to tousle Kate's hair. The girl paid her no mind, though. She just continued to stare expectantly at Keith. All he could really do was answer her honestly.

"Sorry. No flying here. Just swimming."

Kate nodded solemnly in acceptance. "Don' worry. I'll get there."

"I believe you," Keith returned.

"Father's made her an army of clockwork birds," Matt recounted as he swam circles around the pod. "He'll probably make her even more for her birthday."

"Birthday?" Keith asked, looking between all of them. "What's that?"

At this, Keith got the distinct impression he'd said something wrong because, to a one, every single person fell silent and stared at him in shock.

"What? What'd I say?" he tried again, looking around at them, unable to really identify their expressions.

"Keith, you- you don't know what a _birthday_ is?" Lance reiterated in disbelief.

"No. That's why I asked," he said, beginning to feel frustrated. What did they want from him?

"Do you know when you were born?" Hunk tried to prompt.

"You _know_ I don't," he growled at them. "Why would I know that?"

"Well," Shiro began, finally taking pity on him, "your birthday is the day you were born. It's how you mark how many years you've lived. Every time your birthday comes back around, you're another year older. I think Gyrgan figured you to be around seven, so your next birthday would be your eighth."

"You get to have a party on your birthday," Lance put in.

"You get to have sweets!" Hunk added.

"And play games!" Rax continued.

"And presents! Don't forget presents," Shay squealed in excitement.

"Yeah. People give you gifts on your birthday," Matt explained.

"Why?" Keith asked, still not sure what they were all so excited about. Except for presents, it all sounded like a lot of the things they normally did.

"Because they're celebrating with you. They're happy you were born and they want you to know that," Shiro told him.

"But... _is_ anyone happy I was born?" he asked without thinking. He knew for a fact neither parent had wanted him and the gang of drifter urchins he'd survived with before making his way into Arus hadn't exactly been glad of each other. They were just not dead together, which had apparently been better than the alternative.

Keith didn't see the shocked look that passed between Allura and Shiro. What he _did_ become aware of pretty quickly was the arm looping around his neck and holding his face firmly against a familiar lanky side.

"Come on, Keith. _Really?_ " the youngest prince of the merpeople whined in earnest as he ferociously scrubbed at the top of the half Galra's head. "You might be a scaredy crab and a hard shell sometimes, but how could we _not_ be happy you were born? We'll throw you the biggest birthday party anybody ever saw."

"Lance! Lemme go, you stupid stuck fin! How're you supposed to throw me a party if I don't have a birthday?" Keith mock growled, not quite able to keep the giggle out of his voice. Shiro had a good laugh of his own before finally moving to separate the two boys.

"How about this, Keith. You can pick a day of your own. Doesn't matter what day it is, so long as it feels special to you. You let us know when that day is and we'll have a birthday party. Just for you. Does that sound good?" Shiro asked him.

Once again, Keith looked around at all of his friends, both old and new, these people who really _were_ happy he was alive, who had welcomed him among them in spite of what he was. They had made him feel welcome and wanted. They had made him feel, for the first time, like he might have a home.

"Can...can it be today? My birthday?" he asked nervously as he looked back up at Shiro.

"What? Today? Really? Are you sure?" Shiro asked him.

"You said it just had to feel special to me," Keith pointed out. "Being here with everyone...this feels like a special day. Unless- it's too much trouble-"

"No! Not at all," Shiro interrupted him. "I just wanted you to be sure. It's very sudden. We won't be able to do much for your eighth birthday."

"Let's do it!" Matt cheered as he climbed out of the water. "Let's start right now. Mother sent some fresh baked bread with us for lunch. We can share that," he said as he went for a basket that was situated further back from the water's edge.

"Moss!" Allura declared a moment later. "I need moss."

"Hunk, we can gather up some abalone. Maybe find some scallops, too," Rax suggested.

"Yay!" Hunk cheered as he followed the older prince back underwater.

"Don't go anywhere. I promise I'll be right back," Shay insisted before ducking back under herself.

Kate rushed out of the cave, hardly giving Matt time to warn her not to go too far.

Lance giggled at the sudden burst of activity. "Guess it's my turn then. Just a minute," the young prince said before finning his way to the mouth of the cave and swimming out into the open water, around the edge and out of sight.

Matt pulled a large wrapped bundle out of his basket and quickly opened it to reveal what Keith could only assume was a loaf of this bread stuff he'd talked about. As he worked breaking the bread into smaller portions, Allura got to work on the strands of moss she'd gathered, braiding them into some sort of loop.

Kate was the first to return from her adventures, moving much slower than she had been before. In her pudgy little fists were clutched two plants of some sort, green-stemmed with clusters of fluffy white pods at the heads. Beckoning Keith back to the water's edge, she quickly handed him one of her prizes. Gazing between her and the plant several times, he was finally forced to ask, "Thank you...but what do we _do_ with them?"

"Like this," Kate instructed him, gripping the stem and blowing on the pods. The white cluster immediately broke free of its stem, scattering dozens of tiny white pods into the air. Kate pointed at the display with a grin on her face. "There. Tha's flying."

With a small grin of his own, Keith eyed his present for a moment before blowing on the pods, sending them to join Kate's in their dance through the air. He couldn't quite stop the giggle that came as he watched.

Shay was the next to return with a particularly striking strand of red seaweed, which she braided into a small rope before braiding that into Keith's hair. While Matt passed out pieces of bread, Allura finished making her moss necklace, which she placed around Keith's neck.

The bread was an entirely new experience for the young half mermyd. The food was warm in his hands. The only time he'd ever tasted warm food was when Lance had shared some coral cakes with him. But this bread was still warm and out in the open, clearly not needing to be kept in a special box to keep out the salt water.

"So?" Matt started through a mouthful of bread. "Are you actually going to eat it or just stare at it all day?"

With barely enough presence of mind to be embarrassed by the small jab, Keith finally took a bite of the bread – and found himself instantly transported.

The food was light and airy in his mouth, like nothing he'd ever tasted before. There were a myriad of new flavors that he had no names for, but they all came together on his tongue in a wondrous new medley. And this was still only the first bite.

"Mmm," he groaned in pleasure as he chewed. "Tha's good," he said around the mouthful of bread.

"Heheh, well, enjoy that," Matt said, tearing his own slice in half and giving the portion to Keith.

He wasn't really sure how long he lingered over that bread, but however long it was, it was enough time for Hunk and Rax to return with their catch of shellfish. While the group got to work cracking open the freshly caught meal, Kate turned to Shiro and asked, "Wha's _your_ present?"

"Hmm?" Shiro returned as if he had no idea what she meant, though he grinned sideways at her.

"We all got Keif a birfday present. Wha's yours?"

"You'll see, just as soon as Lance gets back."

"Where is he, anyway?" Hunk asked as he cracked open a clam, glancing toward the cave mouth while he devoured the meat inside. "It's been a while."

Keith didn't say anything to this, though he couldn't help but worry. Maybe pushing for this day had been too much for the prince? Maybe he didn't want any part of this? Maybe he'd gone home without them? Whatever it was, the young half mermyd found himself swearing silently up and down that he would apologize to the other boy the very next time he saw him. It really had been too much, to just push the day on all of them like this...

"I'm back!" Lance declared raucously as he burst back into the cave. "Sorry I took so long. I just wanted to find the right one," he explained as he swam up to Keith, placing a lime-encrusted shell in his hands with great ceremony.

"Thank you," Keith mumbled out quickly, not certain what made this shell different from any other, but wanting the prince to know he was happy.

"Look inside," Lance whispered conspiratorially to him as he moved to join up with the others.

When Keith did flip the shell, he quickly understood what Lance had meant. Hidden inside the shell's crusty exterior was a smooth, vibrant layer of mother-of-pearl with a particularly strong sheen of blue to it. It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. But when he looked up at Lance to tell him so, the young prince was smirking at him, arms crossed casually over his chest.

"It's the best one, right."

As much as he loved his present, Keith found himself almost annoyed by the prince's casual confidence. Here the boy had made him worry about pushing too far and asking for too much, only to show up with the assumption that his gift couldn't be anything but the best. He couldn't just tell him he was right.

"Don't know," Keith said, raising his nose a few inches in the air as he swam over to their guardian. "Shiro didn't give me a present yet."

"Yeah. What is it? What's your present?" all of the others immediately began clamoring, demanding to know what it was the young trainee had in mind. Shiro didn't have all that much to explain, though. All he had to do was look Keith in the eye and start singing.

 _For one so small_

 _You seem so strong_

 _My arms will hold you_

 _Keep you safe and warm_

 _This bond between us_

 _Can't be broken_

 _I will be here_

 _Don't you cry_

Immediately, Keith was enchanted, and he knew everyone else was, too. He didn't think there was a person on land or sea who could resist the allure of Shiro's singing. He'd seen the older boy calm angry soldiers and soothe fighting trainees with a simple song. Whenever he was troubled by nightmares, a little melody from Shiro could ease him right back to sleep.

 _'Cuz you'll be in my heart,_

 _Yes, you'll be in my heart_

 _From this day on_

 _Now and forever more_

 _You'll be in my heart_

 _No matter what they say_

 _You'll be here in my heart_

 _Always_

Which was the best present? How could he say? How could he possibly say? An amazing new food from Matt. A fun game with Kate. A necklace woven by Allura. A special meal gathered by Hunk and Rax. A precious braid from Shay. Something beautiful from Lance. And now a song from Shiro just for him.

Wonderful. They were all so wonderful.

 _Why can't they understand the way we feel?_

 _They just don't trust what they can't explain_

 _I know we're different but deep inside us_

 _We're not that different at all._

 _And you'll be in my heart_

 _Yes, you'll be in my heart_

 _From this day on_

 _Now and forever more_

As he listened to Shiro's singing, Keith found that he couldn't help thinking...maybe the song was about _all_ of them – that it wasn't just a song Shiro knew, that it was about all of them right here in this moment. He was nothing. He was no one – a filthy halfbreed orphan nobody wanted. How had he gotten here? How had he gotten so lucky as to be part of this little circle?

 _Don't listen to them_

 _'Cuz what do they know?_

 _We need each other_

 _To have, to hold_

 _They'll see in time_

 _I know_

 _When destiny calls you_

 _You must be strong_

 _I may not be with you_

 _But you've got to hold on_

 _They'll see in time_

 _I know_

 _We'll show them together_

 _'Cuz you'll be in my heart_

 _Believe me, you'll be in my heart_

 _I'll be there from this day on_

 _Now and forever more_

 _Oh, you'll be in my heart_

 _No matter what they say_

 _You'll be here in-_

Before Shiro could finish the song, Keith had rushed to him, burying his face in the older mermyd's chest so no one could see the tears streaming down his face.

"Keith, what's-"

"Thank you!" he blurted out, clinging to Shiro. "Th- thanks- all of you. This...it's- the best birthday...anyone ever had," he sobbed. Shiro quickly returned the hug, gently stroking Keith's shuddering back.

"You deserve it, Keith," the older boy told him. "You're one of us."

At this, the others all came to join in the hug, enfolding the half mermyd in one large circle. Lance and Hunk, Rax and Shay, even Matt jumped back into the water. Allura even tried to join in from the edge of the water, but wound up just splashing into the water herself. And unless he was imagining it, that was little Kate crawling on top of his head, completing the pile in her own odd way.

Keith didn't question it. How could he? All there really was to do was to remain there in the warm circle of his friends – to feel just how happy he was for every moment of sadness and loneliness and despair he'd carried before.

 _Family. I have a family._

XxX

If nothing else could be said of Princess Allura of Altea, it could always be said that she was stubborn – stubborn as the day was long. As such, no one was surprised when she insisted on sitting out on her balcony in the chilly breeze off the ocean, in spite of the small fever that was still hanging on from her bout of summer cold.

Given her own choice, she would've been right down on the beach with everyone else, but that was where her father was putting his foot down. He always said he was not going to lose her the same way he'd lost her mother. While Allura was certain this time was just paranoia on his part, she just couldn't argue with her father when he was missing her mother.

Sometimes she wished she'd known her. Queen Halana had been well-loved by everyone. But then she would think of Shiro, who did still hold memories of his parents. Remembering them certainly didn't seem to make missing them any easier to bear. If anything, it likely made it harder – knowing what you'd lost. Allura didn't know. Everyone always said what a tragedy it was that the queen had died so soon after her birth, but Allura knew she would never understand just how much of a tragedy it was. After all, how could you miss someone you didn't remember?

Shaking herself from her dark thoughts with a shiver and a cough, the princess turned her attention down to the gathering on the beach below, waving to Hunk and the twins once they'd emerged from the water. Shiro, Plaxum, Lance, and Keith had already surfaced and were stretched out on the wet sand, chatting amiably with Matt and Pidge whilst the little girl drew diagrams in the sand. It was Pidge's sixth birthday today and their regular group of friends, as well as several more of the royal siblings, had come up to see her.

Even as she smiled down on the scene, Allura scolded herself for Kate's nickname. Matt had dreamed it up from how often Allura herself had called the girl Pigeon for her obsession with joining the birds in the sky. It drove Kate to frustration, but the nickname was sticking even beyond her father's ability to do anything about it. Alfor himself called Kate Pidge from time to time. Not even the fact that the child was bold enough to call her king out on how much she disliked the nickname could discourage it. Allura hoped everyone was being nicer about it, today of all days, but the look of intense concentration on her face was not telling one way or the other. It simply meant that she was deaf to everything else around her as she worked on her design.

Matt, Keith, and Lance chattered excitedly over her head about something Allura couldn't quite make out from this distance. Shiro and Shay looked to be having a more serious conversation while, further down the beach, Allura just barely caught sight of Samuel and Colleen conversing with Acxa and Rolo. While she could at least discern the tone of her friends' conversations from their expressions, the other four were just too far off for her to make out even that much. Whatever it was, she supposed it was something the adults wanted to keep separate from the joyous celebration of Pidge's birthday.

 _Kate! Kate,_ she reminded herself sharply. _That's your fault. You've no right to call her anything else._

Kate was completely absorbed in what she was working on, though. Allura had no doubt it was yet another design for a pair of wings. At six, her designs didn't consist of more than paper and wood, but she always insisted that they be taken seriously, and the more mechanically-minded among their group were only too happy to oblige her. Even now Plaxum, Hunk, and Rax were wriggling closer on the sand to have a look at what she was working on. Plaxum made several comments before making a small adjustment to Kate's drawing. At first, the little girl looked aghast, but then she actually seemed to look at the princess' suggestion and she began to grin wickedly. Hunk made a few comments of his own before gently tousling Kate's hair. She ducked away from the touch with a shout of protest, but the wry grin on her face said she didn't really mind it.

Keith and Lance laughed at something Matt had said before turning simultaneously and seizing Kate in their hands. She struggled briefly against their hold, but in the next moment they were lifting her onto their shoulders and she had absolutely no arguments with the new vantage point. She laughed maniacally as she pointed out to sea, just barely managing to keep her footing on the slick shoulders of the two merboys.

Suddenly Matt leaned in to whisper something in Keith's ear. The half-mermyd blushed violently at his words, twitching and losing his concentration beneath Kate's weight. Lance tried to keep her up, but she ended up tumbling down on top of Rax. Allura half-wondered if it might come to blows or shouting between the two, as they could both be very nasty when slighted, but they just ended up in fits of tangled giggles on the shifting sand. They were all having so much fun. Oh, how she wished she could join them!

Unfortunately, a heavy coughing fit swiftly reminded her why she couldn't. It seemed the sound of it had carried, though, because when she looked up again, her friends were all gazing up at her balcony in concern. Shiro looked almost wounded in his worry.

Rushing to reassure them, she waved them off with a warm smile, making sure to pull her blankets more securely around her shivering form. The others slowly began to shift back into the conversation down on the beach, but Shiro continued to gaze up at her, offering up a gentle, sideways smile of his own. Raising an eyebrow, he mimed resting his head on his hands, indicating that maybe she ought to be sleeping. Giggling softly, she shook her head to reassure him she was all right. Normally, she would've called down to him, but her throat was still a little too sore for that.

Shiro's shoulders slumped slightly at her attempts at comfort, but the very next moment a new smile lit his face. Shifting gracefully on the sand, he helped Kate to disentangle herself from Rax and then pulled her close, whispering something in her ear. The little girl's face immediately burst into a magnificent smile and she nodded eagerly. They only separated long enough for Shiro to wriggle his way back into the surf. When there was enough depth for him to properly swim again, he took Kate's hand and began to escort her into the small breaking waves, as if they were about to make their grand entrance at a lavish ball.

When the water started to get deeper, Shiro rolled onto his back and pulled Kate over to straddle his chest, towing her out even farther. Now Allura was _really_ starting to wonder what they were up to. Kate could swim perfectly well. Why would she need to be towed? Hopefully she'd find out before the pair got too far out to see.

"Shiro, what are you up to? She's a bird, not a fish!" Matt shouted loud enough for Allura to hear. By this time, the spectacle had even gotten the attention of the Holts and the older prince and princess.

Shiro and Kate paid the others no mind. At some unseen signal from Shiro, Kate stretched out to lie flat along the length of his body. Then Kate took a deep breath and Shiro pulled them both under.

Allura waited for the two to resurface with bated breath, having no more clue what was happening than any of the others on the beach. Just when she was beginning to wonder how long little Kate could hold her breath, Shiro burst up out of the water, the powerful line of his body shooting through the air with Pidge clutched firmly against his chest.

The six-year-old whooped with joy as their friends watched in amazement, drops of water catching and sparkling in her long hair like diamonds as she and Shiro flew through the air. Then, just as Shiro reached the apex of his arc, he flung Pidge even higher in the air, smiling up at her as he curved back down into the water.

For a moment, Pidge almost seemed to hang suspended in the air, arms flung wide and hair whipping in the wind. The folds of her simple green dress spread out almost like wings as she flew through the sky unaided, her smile brighter than Allura had ever seen it.

Pidge shrieked with glee every moment she was airborne. Seeming to cling to her instant of flight for as long as she possibly could, she only just managed to slip into a dive the instant before she hit the water. Laughing, Shiro quickly dove back under to retrieve her, aware that a dive from such a height might have taken the little girl further down than she was capable of swimming back on her own.

Thankfully, Pidge was just as gleeful upon resurfacing in Shiro's arms. She whooped and laughed, waving to her friends back on the shore, who were all cheering wildly, even Allura, despite the pain in her throat.

"Matt! Papa! Mama! Did you see me?" Pidge shrieked exuberantly as Shiro towed her back in. " _I flew!_ "

Everyone congratulated Pidge as she tumbled back onto the sand, pulling her into a massive group hug. Even her parents and the other two royal siblings had come down the beach to join in by this time. All of the focus was on Pidge, but during all of this commotion, Allura found her own attention fixed on Shiro.

He was hanging back from the group just a little, watching Pidge's triumph with the most beautiful smile Allura had ever seen on his face. She could almost swear she could follow the progression of his thoughts as she looked into his eyes. This was _her_ victory. Not his. Even though this moment was all thanks to him, it was not something he had done to be thanked. It was something he had done because he knew it would make Pidge happy. He didn't do things for himself. He did them for others. He was never a factor in his own equations. It was how he'd always been, from the moment she'd first known him. Only...if he was always worrying about the happiness of others...who was there to worry about _his_ happiness?

In that moment, something was illuminated in the young princess' soul. Perhaps it was something that had always been there, only she hadn't let herself know it before now.

 _I love you._

She felt the words blossom in her heart, felt them rise on her breath, ready to be spoken on her next exhalation, but just on the tip of her tongue, at the very edge of her lips, she held them in. She kept the truth inside because, even at the moment of this fundamental awakening, this first blush of an untold, unlooked for happiness, she felt a tiny prick of pain in her heart that grew right alongside the flower of her love. For even in the moment of this acknowledgement, she was also forced to acknowledge the impossibility of it.

 _I love you...and I can never say it. I could never burden such a giving heart with this weight._

If she were ever to say to her best friend just how much she loved him and her feelings weren't returned, she knew he wouldn't be able to find it in himself to let her down. It would never be about _his_ happiness. It would be about _hers_ , and she loved him too much to allow him to sacrifice himself like that. Not for her. Even if she _were_ ever lucky enough to be blessed with his love, what could they do about it? Words she'd read long ago in one of her mother's old philosophy texts echoed across the years to her with a deafening finality.

 _A bird may love a fish...but where would they live?_

No. She wouldn't put this on Shiro. She could never – because he, in his selflessness, would attempt to bear it for her. If she could do nothing else for this dearest of hearts, she could _protect_ it. She could do everything in her power to see that Takashi Shirogane was happy.

 _I'll do what I can, Shiro...for you...because you are dearest to my heart._

So, with tears of joy and heartbreak pouring silently down her face, Allura continued to clap for Pidge's first flight. Maybe she couldn't have what she wanted, but at least Pidge could dream of a future where she could have wings.

XxX

(A/N) Couple notes for you. The first song in this chapter is 'Your Heart Will Lead You Home' by Kenny Loggins, and the second song is 'You'll Be In My Heart' by Phil Collins, which I hope everyone knows but, y'know, just in case. :)


	3. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

(A/N) New chapter. Yay! And I say unto you, dear readers, enjoy your fluff while ye may.

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 3: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea_

"Are you sure this'll work?" Matt asked, staring shrewdly at the pod of young mermyds.

"Of course it'll work. I'm positive," Lance threw down in his typical suave tone. Granted, there was a certain amount of incredulity to be had over a suave eight-year-old, but let it never be said that Prince Lance of Arus didn't know how to work a crowd.

"Lance," Keith scolded, flipping a small splash of water in his direction as the prince swam back and forth before their three human friends.

"Okay. I'm seventy percent positive it's going to work," Lance amended as he continued his display, flashing his tail in the cave's limited sunlight.

"Uh...Lance," Hunk interrupted nervously.

"Fine. More like fifty percent," the merboy conceded, though he continued his casual act.

"Lance," Shay scolded her brother.

"Thirty percent?" Lance suggested pleadingly, looking around at all of them as he finally came to a stop.

"Try again," Shiro prompted with a patient nod and expectant gaze.

"All right, all right, _fine._ I've never done it before," the prince groaned, slapping the water with his tail in frustration. "But it's an easy spell. A sorceress' novice could do it."

"So why haven't you?" Pidge pressed, her tone superior in the way only a six-year-old's could be.

"Because it tires him," Rax answered before Lance could say anything. "He's only just reached a point where he can maintain it on his own. I'm honestly not sure this is such a good idea."

"Rax," Shiro started, his voice firm but not unkind, "this is Lance's decision. If he thinks he can do it, we should let him try."

"All right, all right, perhaps we should start on a better foot," Allura interrupted, though at the expression, the entire mermyd group looked toward her and held up their tails as one. The princess laughed at herself as she rolled her eyes toward the cave ceiling, knowing it was neither the first nor the last time she would make that guff. "Start from the beginning, I mean. I understand you want to show us your home. What is it exactly you're going to attempt?"

"It's far sight," Shay began. "It's one of the mystic gifts of the royal family. Lance was the only one in our generation to receive it. He has the ability to see over distances and he can share that gift if he wants to, but he's never tried before."

"He's not wrong. It's a simple enough spell to share the sight. This would just be his first time working with it," Shiro put in.

"Thanks, you guys. Your vote of confidence is overwhelming," Lance bit out snappishly.

"It's not that we don't think you can do it. You can totally do it," Hunk reassured him. "We're just worried about you. It's better if they understand what's going on up front."

"And what happens if it _doesn't_ work?" Pidge was the one to ask the blunt question, as always. "Will we go blind? Do we get stuck sharing one eye with _you_ forever? What?"

"I never heard of anything like _that_ happening," Lance assured them, wrinkling his nose at the thought. "Don't worry. It won't hurt if I can't do it. It just won't work."

The three humans stared at him warily for a moment before Allura finally spoke for them, her head tilting to the side as she smiled concedingly at him.

"Well, if you believe you can do it, I see no reason not to trust you. We're ready when you are."

"All right," Lance started, squaring his shoulders before swimming up to them. "I need you to join hands. Go on, do it," he encouraged when they hesitated. Matt drew in a deep breath before taking Allura's hand and Pidge rolled her eyes, thrusting her hand into the princess' other one. Then Lance took the siblings' hands in his own, joining them all in a circle. "Okay, that's good. Next I need you all to close your eyes."

Allura did so without question. Matt must have, as well, but it seemed Pidge was being the obstinate one as usual.

"Come on, shrimp. You, too."

Pidge half-snarled in annoyance, but finally seemed to comply, as Lance soon continued his instruction.

"You're going to be feeling a brief jolt through our little circle here. You just need to keep calm and hold on tight, because if you let go, it'll break the spell and we'll have to start all over. Everybody ready?"

Once they'd all nodded their assent, Lance drew in a deep breath. "Okay. Here we go."

Within a few moments, Allura felt the jolt Lance had talked about. If she hadn't been warned to keep her hold, she surely would've released the connection, but it took only a few seconds for the brief sting to pass. As the young prince's power spread through the circle, she felt an almost pleasant tingling traveling up her arms. Then she felt heat beginning to pool within her eyes, almost as if a warm cloth had been laid over them. The sensation continued to build, hovering on the edge of uncomfortable when Lance drew another noticeable breath, this one shuddering and labored.

"Lance? You okay?" Keith's voice came to her through the darkness. To anyone who didn't know the nine-year-old, it would have seemed like his usual indifferent tone, but she could hear the undercurrent of worry in his words. The moment between his question and Lance's response seemed almost to charge the air.

"I'm good. I'm fine. We're all fine here. Everybody holding up all right?" he asked them.

"I'm all right," Allura answered, her voice just a hair thinner than usual.

"Good here," Matt grunted.

"It's all right. It's all right," Pidge whimpered. Her voice was worryingly high, but if Shiro wasn't intervening at all, Allura decided it would be safe to go on trusting Lance.

"Okay. We should be ready now. You're all going to need to stay calm when you open your eyes because you're going to be sharing my sight. You'll see what _I_ see. If you don't keep it together, I might not be able to maintain the connection. So let's just all keep calm, yeah?"

"Lance calm? This I might have to see," Matt joked in an attempt to ease the tension.

"Sorry, but that's not gonna happen. Much as I hate depriving you of my shining presence, you only get to see what I see, not the me myself," he teased, and Allura could just picture the playful grin on his face. "Okay. You can open your eyes now."

Slowly, Allura blinked her eyes open, and found herself staring at...herself.

Her eyes were glowing an intense blue color, and as she took in the sight, she watched her own mouth fall open in amazement.

"Oh...my..." she stuttered out, feeling the words in her mouth while watching her lips speak them. It was a strange, amazing, dissonant sensation that she just didn't have the words to describe. All she could really do was stare in shock.

"Whoa...Lance, just...wow," she heard Matt's voice beside her, but she could see him speaking the words. Out of the corner of Lance's eye, she watched Pidge raise a hand and wave at herself. Lance just snickered.

"Yeah, I am pretty amazing, aren't I."

Pidge's expression immediately twisted in annoyance at this. "I'd say there'll be no living with him now, but that assumes you could live with him before."

"You know you love me," Lance fired back, and again, Allura could just picture the smirk they were being fixed with at that moment. Before the issue could devolve into an argument, Shiro quickly took the reins.

"All right. If everyone's ready, we can go."

"Sure," Keith said, immediately moving in to take Lance by the hand.

"What is it? Did the poor prince forget the way home already?" Pidge teased mildly.

"No," Keith answered before Lance could speak up. "He just needs to focus on maintaining the connection with you three. I'm supposed to help lead him."

"Come on. Let's get going. I want to see Arus!" Matt cheered, quickly brushing away his sister's faux pas.

"All right. Shay, if you would," Shiro said.

Giggling excitedly, Shay quickly slipped beneath the water, followed by Rax and Hunk. Keith and Lance immediately fell in behind them and Allura imagined Shiro was taking up the rear, but she could hardly think about that as she caught her first glimpse of the underwater world.

Normally, she couldn't bear to keep her eyes open against the sting of the salt water, but even when she could stand it, everything was always blurry to her human eyes. Lance's vision was crystal clear underwater and, through his eyes, she beheld a world she'd never seen before.

There were beds of emerald green moss and schools of brightly colored fish that she only knew the names of about a quarter of. There were scuttling red crabs and gentle green sea turtles. There were spills of rock that appeared gray and featureless from a distance, but that burst into rainbows of color as they swam by. There were deep green forests of seaweed and mountains of coral that had more colors than she could name. The faint noises of the cave her physical body inhabited faded to the back of her mind, replaced by the amplified sounds caught by Lance's ears. For a moment, she thought she might've heard the distant harmony of a whale's song. There was so much to see, too much to take in. It was a beauty she'd not known until this moment.

Somewhere in the background, she could hear Pidge firing off questions at a mile a minute. Questions about how the schools swam in sync and how the sponges fed and what the jellyfish were. Was there actual jam involved? How did the crabs find their shells? Why wasn't coral rock? What were the whales singing about? Could any of the other animals come up on land? Lance tried to answer as many of the questions as he could, and when he couldn't, he'd pass them off to Keith or Shiro. Allura giggled quietly, certain she'd never heard Pidge this interested in anything but birds.

"I'm surprised you all make the journey as often as you do. This seems like a pretty long swim," Matt commented. Allura found herself shivering as they waited for a response. She hadn't been able to help noticing how the water had been getting darker the deeper they went.

"It's not as long as you might think," Lance answered. "We're getting close. See this ridge just up ahead? It drops down onto the Mora Flats. That's when you'll see Arus."

If Matt had held back his comment just a bit longer, Lance wouldn't have needed to explain at all. The moment the group swam over the ridge and out into the open water, a massive crystal dome became visible on the sandy flats below, glowing brilliantly in the encroaching undersea gloom.

"I've never seen anything like it," Allura whispered before she could stop herself.

"This is nothing," Shiro said in response when Lance relayed her comment. "Wait until we get inside."

The city's entrance was through a crystalline seal which slid aside to allow them entrance once the members of the group had identified themselves. They were then ushered through a series of simple stone chambers before emerging into a massive forest of kelp.

"That's- a bit of a letdown," Matt couldn't seem to stop himself from commenting either. "I thought Arus was a city. I don't see a city."

"You can see the lights in the distance," Lance explained as he pointed above and beyond the tangles of kelp.

"The forest is part of the system. It's both food and oxygen. Farmers harvest and maintain the forest and the kelp keeps the city's water fresh," Shiro jumped in, probably understanding their confusion.

The swim through the forest seemed another fair distance to Allura, though she was beginning to understand that they and their friends had different ideas about what constituted a fair distance. She wasn't sure if she was imagining it or not, but it seemed to her that Keith swam a little closer to Lance during the journey. She began to catch sight of the city's crystal spires soaring above the kelp strands as they came closer to the forest's end, but she didn't get the true impact of it until she could finally see the whole thing.

Arus was a shining labyrinth of stone, electrum, crystal, and bone. Some of the architecture she was able to recognize from the human world, but there was more still she couldn't make heads or tails of and was certain she would have to ask about. The city streets were lit by large, luminous glass lamps that shed mesmerizing blue, green, and pale gold shades upon the beautiful structures.

"It's so beautiful," Allura whispered as she took it all in. "I can't imagine ever leaving."

"There's beauty in your world, too," was Shiro's response when Lance reported what she'd said. Allura half-wished she could see Shiro's face then, but the other half was relieved that what she looked at was dictated by Lance. Once again she let herself sink into the marvelous sights the young prince was showing them, settling back and allowing Pidge to ask the questions for the things none of them understood.

"Why aren't there any chairs?" Pidge finally asked, putting a finger on something that had been niggling at the back of Allura's mind.

"Huh?" was all Lance could manage to come back with after several silent seconds.

"Chairs. I see mermyds eating at cafes, but they're all tangled up in nets."

"You mean the lattices? Why wouldn't they be?"

"People sit in chairs to eat, not roll up in nets," the little girl protested.

"What- what's a chair?" Lance asked, finally having to admit his ignorance.

" _Oh,_ " Shiro cut in, seeming to make sense of the half conversation he'd been hearing. "Humans can't stand all the time, Lance. It's like asking a mermyd to swim every hour of every day. Remember how you see Allura and the others sitting on the beach or the rocks?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, they don't have to worry about drifting whenever they gather for meals. They can just stay in one spot. So they sit down on these pieces of furniture called chairs."

"Oh," the young mermyds all chorused together.

"Okay, no chairs," Pidge continued impatiently. "Why the nets?"

"They're _not_ nets," Lance fired back defensively. "They're called lattices. You heard Shiro. We drift. We don't get to stay in one place like you guys do. When we _need_ to be able to stay in one place, like for meals or gatherings, we can anchor ourselves in the lattices. Then we don't have to worry about drifting away. There are lattices everywhere in the city."

"Wow," Matt returned. "That's got to be annoying, not being able to stay in one place if you need to."

"Stillness is death to a mermyd," Allura said quietly, recalling something Shiro had once said.

"Seriously? That's a bit heavy, isn't it?" Matt bounced back.

"She's right," Lance took up explaining once again. "It's hard for our gills to pull oxygen from still water. It's better for us to be able to drift with the current to keep water moving over them."

" _Is_ there a current in the city?" Pidge asked. "Seems like the dome would block that."

"Hunk, I'm gonna let you handle this one," Lance called to his friend. "Pidge wants to know about the dome and the city currents. She doesn't get how there's a current in the city."

"Oh, well, the way Mama explained it to me is that the dome actually lets us _control_ the current," Hunk started as the group continued to swim through the streets. "That's why Arus was built this way. You can't control the current of the open ocean. Sometimes it's harsh and sometimes there isn't any. The best our ancestors could do was move with it. In order to create an environment that could guarantee a healthy current, a closed off space had to be made. There are filtration systems beneath the city that keep the water moving at a breathable pace. So constant movement's not _as_ big a deal as it was for the earlier mermyds, but it's still better for us to be able to drift than to be still."

"You're serious?" Pidge demanded through Lance. "A system that moves water for the _whole city?_ "

"Completely serious. Mama's going to teach me more about it some day so I can take over maintaining it when I'm older."

"Matt, why don't _we_ have something like that?"

"What would we use it for? We don't need to move water."

"But energy like that? Maybe it could power more of Papa's designs? Maybe _this_ is the way to make wings?"

Allura giggled mildly to herself. Of course it had come back to wings. It always did with her. "I'm not sure it's so simple as that, but you can always ask your father about it."

"Maybe I will," Pidge sniffed.

"Lance, is that also why I don't see any doors?" Allura asked their guide. She'd noticed that any entryways she'd spotted seemed to only be covered by curtains of fabric and braided kelp. "So that nothing stops the movement of water? Even in the buildings?"

"That's right. There are a few doors in the palace, but Arus is mostly an open place."

"So what is it that-"

Pidge's latest question was interrupted when a dolphin suddenly swam up to the group with a large clamshell clutched between its teeth. The animal came right up to Shiro, nosing at him to take the shell. The young merman did so, gazing at the shell for several moments.

"Hold on a second! How do you have _dolphins_ down here? They need air to breathe," Pidge protested.

"Course they do. We've got dry rooms for them," Lance answered, and Allura noticed he was beginning to sound very tired after this latest round of rapid exchanges.

"What are dry rooms?"

"Hold on. Lance, are you-"

This time the question was interrupted when Lance's perspective slid suddenly to the right, his head drifting to rest on Keith's shoulder. For a moment, Allura's vision flickered between the cave and the underwater city.

"Lance!" Keith started sharply. "Lance, are you all right?"

"No, he's not all right. He's made himself tired," Rax snapped as Shay moved in to check on him. "I told you this was a bad idea."

"All right, all right. Everybody calm down," Shiro cut in, moving to scoop Lance up in his arms. "Sorry, Allura, but I think we'd better cut the tour short today. We can pick it up again some other time. They need me back at the palace, and this little prince needs to get some rest."

"Of course," Allura said, only barely remembering that Shiro wouldn't know what she'd said unless Lance told him. "It's all right, Lance. You can go ahead and break the connection now."

"Sorry," he mumbled in response. "I promise I'll be stronger next time. I want to show you the _whole_ city."

Before any of them could respond, Lance had severed the connection, leaving them all blinking in the late afternoon sunlight that filtered into the cave.

"Shoot," Matt muttered, kicking a pebble into the water. "I hope he's all right."

"Oh, you know Lance. I'm sure he'll be fine," Allura said, though she knew she'd certainly be sticking with Rax in the future in wanting to be sure that the youngest prince was strong enough to handle the ordeal.

"Think any of the other princesses or princes have powers like that?" Pidge wondered.

"You know...I don't know," Allura said after a few thoughtful moments. "I seem to recall Acxa saying that the abilities weren't as strong in their generation, but I'm really not sure."

Undeterred, Pidge continued to fire off questions, which Allura left Matt to field as they made their way back up to the castle. As amazing as the experience they'd just been through had been, all she could seem to think about were the words Shiro had spoken before.

 _There's beauty in your world, too._

XxX

 _As with all things in their time, so too must childhood come to an end. The young merman completed his training under the Guard and, upon reaching his seventeenth birthday, he was admitted to their dwindling numbers as a full Guardsman._

XxX

Shiro swallowed heavily as he waited outside the royal audience chamber, flanked by Olia and Regris.

"Nervous?" Olia asked him.

"A- a little bit, yes," he answered honestly, never the sort to lie, even for the sake of appearing strong. "I just- I'm not really used to having so many eyes on me."

"Nothing to worry about. You've only been preparing your whole life for this moment," the older Guard teased lightly, her short, tawny hair swirling to frame her face as she turned to grin at him.

"Olia, is this really the time for this?" Regris asked stiffly, doing his best to maintain decorum.

"No time better. The kid's only got everyone's respect to lose. But hey, Shiro, if nothing else, know that _we_ appreciate you. With you joining up, Regris and me aren't the rookies anymore. It's all you, right up until the next trainee joins up," she reminded him, giving him a companionable dig in the shoulder before going back to gripping her ceremonial spear tightly in both hands.

"Right. I'll keep that in mind," he said with a small laugh, releasing only a minuscule amount of the tension in his shoulders. Before either of his escorts could say anything more, the great doors leading into the chamber were rolled back, signaling them to enter.

Shiro swam in first, with Olia and Regris not far behind. The complete ranks of the Guard present in the city were all arrayed within the chamber to witness this welcome of their newest member. Awaiting him at the front of the chamber was the royal family, Queen Honerva with all seven of her children lined up to witness. Also among them were Hunk, Trigel, Gyrgan, and Blaytz, all with a proud smile for him. Really, the only one who wasn't technically present was Keith, who wasn't permitted to witness the Changing of the Guard ceremony until his own time came. Shiro didn't doubt that the boy was still watching, though. He knew Lance was viewing for Allura and the Holts and the gang had joked about getting Keith in on that. As much as Shiro respected the traditions of his father's guild, all he'd said in response to the joking was that he didn't want to know about it. While he protected all of the younger ones like they were his own, Keith was the one among them who really was like the little brother he'd never had. Why shouldn't he be allowed to watch Shiro ascend?

Chiefly among the group at the head of the chamber was Thace, the Captain of the Guard. Unlike the others, his expression was somber and focused, bearing the full weight of the ancient ceremony of his order. Though Shiro had found the captain to be a fair and giving instructor over the years, he knew Thace wouldn't permit himself to reveal his true thoughts on the young Guard's ascension until the Changing was complete.

Her own expression growing solemn, Honerva finned over to Thace, her regal bearing never once faltering as she began the traditional words.

"Ever since our human ancestors walked from the land into the sea, the merfolk have been ruled by the royal bloodline. Whether king or queen has worn the crown, there has always been a sovereign, and beside that sovereign has stood the ancient order of the Guard. For as long as there has been one brave enough to lead our people in times of both joy and sorrow, there have been those who would protect, those brave enough to defend the crown they believe in, no matter who wears it. Only the best among us rise to join these ranks through trials of body, mind, and spirit; and today their number will grow, swelled by the brightest star of a new generation," she intoned, a little bit of her warmth and pride creeping back into her eyes as she looked to Shiro. "And so, declare yourself, Arisen One. Who is it who submits themselves to join as one with the Guard?"

"It is I, Takashi Shirogane, son of Ulaz and Luxia Shirogane, child born of faith," Shiro declared in the loudest voice he could muster, identifying himself for the first time by his full name.

"Then come forth, Takashi Shirogane, and give your oath," his queen said with a firm nod, drifting back to allow Thace forward.

Shiro swam forward with his escort still behind him, meeting Thace's intent gaze with what he hoped was a steadfast one of his own. With no hint of what was going through his head, Thace passed his spear to Regris so he could place one hand on Shiro's shoulder and the other on his forehead.

"Takashi Shirogane," the captain declared for all the chamber to hear. Though his voice was not as carrying as the queen's, it was still possessed of a different sort of resolve, a firmness of tone that demanded attention. "I have trained you with my own hands and given you what knowledge it lies with me to give. I declare you fit to serve among my most loyal warriors. So I ask you, before your peers, before your ancestors, and before your queen, do you believe yourself worthy to join our ranks?"

"Yes. I have given the best of myself in order to become worthy and I declare, without reservation, that I will give everything I am to the service of my queen and her blood," he said, coming to the end of the scripted part of the oath. What was going to happen next, he could only guess.

"If that is so, permit me one question. What is it that is dearest to your heart...Takashi Shirogane? What is it that gives form to your life?" Thace asked him, eyes narrowing and grip on his shoulder tightening.

Shiro blinked at Thace, uncertain for a moment. He had no idea what was expected of him, and thinking back on it later, he would realize that was the point. There was little he could do but answer truthfully.

"My friends," he said, gaze briefly flicking to the lineup of his young charges and those watching through them...Keith...Allura. "My family. The- the memory of my family."

"I believe you," the captain said when Shiro's gaze rejoined with his. "Have you brought the tokens you were bid to lay before this gathering?"

"I have."

"Then present them."

At this, Shiro reached for a small pouch he had tied to his belt, untying the knots that held it closed. The pouch contained only four items: the carved bone handle of a dagger his father had wielded on the last night of his life, a tonesphere that had belonged to his mother, the pearl-handled dagger Lance and the others had given him, and the last, a gift from Allura, a carved crystal pendant of some land animal he couldn't always remember the name of. Luon? Lion? Something like that? It didn't matter to him. It was a gift from Allura and he wore it always. These were the physical manifestations of everything that mattered to him in the world, and he was beginning to feel he understood why he'd been asked to present them.

"You say you will give all that you are to the service of Queen Honerva, so I ask you one last time, these things that define you...would you give even _them_ up in service to our queen? As a member of the Guard, will you give up the things that matter most to you?" Thace demanded in a quiet, penetrating voice, leading Shiro to understand that the words that had been spoken up to this point were irrelevant. This was the true vow.

"Yes is my answer, Captain," he began after a moment of painful silence, "but I feel a simple yes is not enough in this case. I would not give these things up because they come second to my duty, but because they _are_ dearest to my heart. If I could not give up what I love most in order to protect it...what would that say about the strength of the heart I offer to my queen? _That_ is the vow I give – a willing heart, in honor of those whom I love," he finished, meeting Thace's gaze head on, not daring to dishonor everything he'd just sworn on with even an ounce of hesitation.

And at last, Thace's hard look shifted into a small smile of pride, letting Shiro know that he could've spoken no better.

"Then I, Thace Enmara, son of Romild and Ikura Enmara, child born of silence, embrace you as comrade and brother," he said, pulling Shiro into a firm hug, "and declare that you, Takashi Shirogane, son of Ulaz and Luxia Shirogane, child born of faith, are now and forevermore a Guardsman of the Crown of Arus."

"And I, Honerva Malain, daughter of Benir and Alness Malain, child born of starlight, confirm the declaration. Long may you defend the seed of Arus," Honerva finished, clapping Shiro on the shoulder before pulling him into a hug of her own.

It didn't take long for the solemn ceremony to devolve into feasting and merrymaking. Chances for celebration were becoming fewer and farther between these days, so even a simple occasion like a Changing of the Guard could wind up a near-festival event. Shiro had so many sacs of kelp wine and nori cones pressed into his hands, he lost count of how much he'd consumed. Though he did at least have enough presence of mind not to argue with Acxa when she pulled the latest sac from his hands, broke the seal, and drained the draught herself, pushing him gently but firmly into Olia's waiting arms.

"Better mind overly generous friends, little Guard, or you won't be able to climb from your hammock for your first watch tomorrow."

"I'll be fine- Acxa. Besides...I'm of- _hic-_ age now- my princess," he slurred mildly, running a hand through his hair. "It is my right."

"Your right to be drunk? Heh, that right will I contest to _no_ newly seventeen-year-old, but I know the little cousin of my heart better than that, I think. You will appreciate me more in the morning for not permitting you to make a fool of yourself tonight. Let's get him up to bed, Olia," the eldest princess encouraged, unobtrusively slipping Shiro's other arm around her neck.

"No, I- I promise you I'll be- fine. Before you know it, I- I'll be- out in the field- fighting the Galra," he said as the two mermaids pulled him through the banquet hall and away from the crowd.

"Heheh, let's not get ahead of ourselves, little starfish," Olia teased mildly. "There're enough of us dying for queen and kingdom as it is."

"You- you don't understand," he started, feeling a brief spike of anger amidst the haze of the wine. "I- I _have_ \- to fight those _monsters._ They have to _pay_ for what happened to my parents!" he snarled, the tight lid he normally kept on that old pain slipping free for a few ugly, unguarded seconds.

" _Shiro!_ " Acxa reprimanded sharply, directing his gaze back to the hall. There were many mermyds still swirling about the space, but the thing his eyes fixed most painfully on was his little pod – the twins, Hunk, Lance...and Keith – little Keith, with his devastated violet eyes as the words Shiro had let escape his lips struck harshly at his ears.

"Keith..." he mumbled, barely comprehending.

For a moment, Keith just hovered there, lower lip trembling, his reddening eyes the only visible sign of the tears he was adding to the salt of the ocean. Then he was gone, vanished in a whirl of bubbles and flashing scales.

"Keith, _stop!_ " he heard Lance's small voice cry out as he swam after him.

"No... _Keith!_ " he half-sobbed as he attempted to break away from Acxa and Olia to go after his brother, but the cold hand closing around one of his wrists was enough to stop him.

" _That's enough,_ Guardsman," Honerva's stern voice hissed in his ear. The hands of his princess and fellow Guard fell away, leaving him drifting there with nothing more than the queen's angered touch holding him in place. "Acxa, leave us. Olia, you will find Regris and head to this seal pup's room. I will bring him to you once I've set him straight."

"Yes, Mother."

"Yes, my queen."

Once the two women had gone, Honerva just stared down at Shiro, her expression nearly so frigid as to freeze the water around them.

"My- my queen," he managed to choke out after a time. "I know I've done wrong, but- but Keith- he-"

"He needs nothing of you right now, Takashi Shirogane," the queen snapped, the pride she'd spoken his name with earlier replaced by enraged reprimand. "You are far from the first merman to make a complete fool of himself off kelp wine, nor will you be the last, but I wouldn't have believed it of _you_ , to let something so vile into that child's hearing. Barely blooded as a Guard and already you shame the title."

"Majesty," he said slowly, every syllable a concerted effort to remaster himself, "you cannot- be angrier with me...than I am with myself right now. I will bear any punishment you deem just. Only...right now...I have to find my brother."

"No, you don't. In fact, I forbid it. His friends will care for him tonight, but _you_ will see neither fin nor scale of that boy until you have your head cleared. I won't have you saying something else you will both regret. I won't even have you on the battlefield."

"W- what?" he mumbled, her declaration just barely finding purchase in his battered heart.

"Surely you must have realized that, Takashi," she said gently, her expression smoothing just that little bit.

"But I- I'd be of _help_. You _know_ I would."

"I do know it, and you _know_ that's why I can't let you. You would save countless lives...but only by giving your own. I'm almost certain that the moment the last of your hair goes white, your life will end. I can't let that happen. I _won't!_ " she snarled as she pulled him into a tight hug. "If I allow you to give your life in my name, it will mean all of this... _all of this_...was for nothing. I owe your parents more than that. I _cannot_ fail them."

"Wha- what do you mean?"

Honerva sighed heavily, hugging him one last time before releasing him. "Never you mind. There are other things for you to worry about. You still have duties to fulfill tonight. Olia and Regris are waiting for you. They'll help you through that wine. I don't want you speaking to Keith until it's all gone from your system. Then you can explain yourself to him, and you and I will talk when you've had less to drink."

"Y- yes, my queen," he conceded unsteadily, making his wavering way through the water without much success.

"Though I suppose I do have enough mercy to help you get there," she said, swimming back to him and pulling an arm around her shoulders, picking up where her daughter had left off and getting Shiro into the waiting arms of his two escorts to complete the Changing of the Guard.

XxX

 _"Give me the child."_

 _He doesn't understand. What does she want with him?_

 _"Haggar, you can't- be serious. What you're proposing, it- it's_ _ **forbidden.**_ _"_

 _"I don't care. I do what I have to now. The boy is the key."_

 _He wants to ask what's happening, but Mama won't let him by. She grabs onto him, holding him tightly against her chest as she moves further back into their quarters, while Papa keeps the king and the witch back._

 _"And...what do you imagine Honerva will say...when it is done?"_

 _"She will curse my name. She will cast me out, banish me to the ends of the world; it does not matter," the witch snarls as she advances, a ball of energy forming in her hand and casting a muted purple glow over the room. "Because you see, Ulaz, she will still be_ _ **alive**_ _to curse the day we were born."_

 _"This- this isn't...I won't allow it," Papa bites out, dagger held at the ready. "If you leave now, I swear I will speak nothing of this, only...don't hurt my son."_

 _Hurt him? What are they talking about?_

 _"Papa?" he calls out in a tiny voice. Mama quickly covers his mouth._

 _"I am not going to go back to watch my wife die, Shirogane," the king growls as he moves forward with the witch, spear drawn. "You would do the same were it your own wife who lay dying."_

 _"No. Never," his father whispers despairingly. "Not a child."_

 _"What of your vow, Guardsman?" the witch needles. "Are you not sworn to give all that is yours for the sake of your queen?"_

 _"Not like this. Not like this. My king, I beg you," he pleads, lowering his head before their attackers. "My child..._ _ **not my child!**_ _"_

 _"If anything, the choice ought to be Takashi's," the witch says with an ugly, bitter laugh. "What do you think, young Shirogane? Do you want to save your queen's life?"_

 _"Queen?" he murmurs uncomprehendingly._

 _"You can't possibly ask him to make a decision like that! I won't let you!" his father declares in anger before darting forward to try and get around the king's spear_ _– only to find himself impaled upon it._

 _"_ _ **PAPA!**_ _" he screams in horror as his father's blood clouds the water, the metallic taste of it coating his tongue with each fresh scream. He can't_ _ **stop**_ _screaming, not even when he's torn from his mother's arms. He hears her cry out when the witch's bolt strikes her._

 _"Hush, child," the witch whispers in his ear as she turns him to face his parents, both drifting helplessly in the water. She quiets his screams with a few simple words. "They're not dead yet."_

 _"M- Mama...Papa...they're n- not..."_

 _"It isn't too late to save them, not yet. You just have to do something for us."_

 _"What- what do you want me to do?" he hiccoughs, fighting to hold back his sobs._

 _"You must choose_ – _choose to give your life for something greater than yourself."_

 _"I...I..."_

 _"You're an accomplice now, Takashi Shirogane. Decide. Do you want to save them? Or don't you?"_

 _"Yes."_

Shiro awoke from the nightmare with a startled cry, jerking up from his hammock. Almost without thought, he slipped from the netting so as not to disturb Olia or Regris. Relieved to see that neither of them had stirred from sleep, he swam over to the small window that looked out over the city, struggling to pull fresh water into his gills.

Haggar and Zarkon...Mama and Papa...that horrible night so long ago he'd spent nearly his whole life trying to forget...and it had reared its head on the most important night of his life. As always, it seemed to be Haggar's words that echoed in his brain.

 _You're an accomplice now._

Accomplice.

Accomplice...complicit in his parents' deaths because he hadn't been strong enough, and now complicit in Keith's suffering because of his own stupidity. Probably Honerva wasn't wrong to keep someone like him from the battlefield. And perhaps it was time – _long_ past time – that he came clean with all the little ones. They were getting older and would have to learn the truth sometime. Wasn't it better that they hear it from him than from anyone else?

Except, there was really only one person he could talk to about all this. So, moving back into his sparse quarters and slipping past his fellow Guards, he went to his trunk, easily brushing aside the ceremonial tunics from where they'd come to rest after their previous activities. Lifting the lid, he reached inside to grab an old mirror – a dented, copper piece of work that had been retrieved from an older shipwreck. Honerva had enchanted it for him so he could keep in touch with Allura. All he had to do was speak the princess' name.

"Allura?" he called gently, as if reaching out to brush her shoulder. It took only a few minutes for his own reflected image to flicker upon the glass, shifting to reveal Allura smiling sleepily up at him, her hair tousled with sleep.

"Hello, Shiro," she murmured, only half awake. Often enough, they would call on each other in the night just to talk and he imagined she thought this was one of those times, but then she really seemed to see the expression on his face. "Are you- Shiro...what's wrong? Shiro, what happened?"

"I'm sorry to wake you, Allura, but I just- I _had_ to see you."

"Shiro, you can always talk to me. I really don't mind being woken. Just tell me what happened."

"Can you come to the cave?"

Allura nodded immediately. "Of course. I'll meet you there."

"Thank you...Allura," he said, voice hitching briefly before he put the mirror away. Slipping his belt back on, he grabbed nothing but his dagger before making his way out of the window and swimming down the Guard tower.

The swim through the city was dim and mostly silent; the swim through the kelp forest even more so. The soldiers stationed at the dome seal let him pass with only a warning. It was dangerous out at night. With no mind even of the large predators that stalked the open waters, there were always Galra scouts waiting to fall on unwary mermyds out by themselves. So, keeping to cover as much as he could, Shiro made his way through the darkened waters, up to the surface.

The new Guardsman emerged slowly into the gloom of the cave. The cavernous space was lit only by a small lantern at Allura's side. Before raising his head completely to expel the water in his lungs, Shiro took a moment to observe his best friend. Though she was wrapped in a thick blanket, she was still shivering in the chill night air. From what he could see, she hadn't even taken the time to change out of her nightgown. She'd probably grabbed the blanket, lit the lantern and rushed down to the cave to wait for him. She was such a good friend, would be a wonderful queen someday, and he was selfish enough to drag her out here in the middle of the night where she might catch cold, just so he could tell her about his own problems. Part of him almost wanted to tell her to go back to bed, but that would be the rudest thing of all after getting her to come all the way down.

Once Shiro had properly emerged and was breathing air, he heaved himself up onto the rocky ledge to sit beside the princess. "You should have at least put on some warmer clothing," he said with a pained laugh.

"I'm fine," she said with a telling shiver. "Besides, even if I weren't, I knew I _would_ be fine when you got here," she finished as she let the blanket slip from her shoulders.

Shiro immediately enfolded her in his arms, pressing her firmly against his side as he awkwardly drew the blanket around them both. In order to survive the colder temperatures of the depths, mermyds had evolved a faster-burning metabolism than their human ancestors. The result being that a mermyd typically ran much hotter than a human, and Allura and the Holts had often taken advantage of the fact that they were friends with a gang of furnaces. The princess cuddled up against Shiro with a contented sigh, taking full advantage of his warmth on this chilly night.

"So what happened? Why did you want to meet?" she pressed, all joking aside. "I thought the ceremony went very well. Have you screwed it up already?"

"Yes," he answered simply. "I...I screwed up badly, Allura."

"What do you mean?"

"I didn't pay attention to the number of wine sacs they passed me. I was reeling, talking about fighting the Galra, calling them monsters...and Keith heard me."

"Oh," Allura murmured in low understanding. "Have you- spoken to him since?"

"No. The queen wouldn't allow it until I was sober."

"A wise decision."

"That and the ceremony wasn't finished."

"Wasn't finished? I thought Lance had let me see everything," she said, turning to look up at him.

"There are some parts of the Changing of the Guard that aren't supposed to be witnessed by other eyes. I certainly wouldn't want Lance watching Olia and Regris bedding me."

"O- oh," Allura started, tone completely different from her first utterance of the interjection. Shiro couldn't quite read the expression on her face as she blinked up at him. "Another- part of the initiation then?"

"Right, but it's really neither here nor there. I don't remember much of it, just...what happened before."

"So...why did you want to talk about it? Just to get it off your chest?"

"That and- I've just been thinking...I've never told you what happened to my parents...have I," he said quietly, looking down at the water.

"No," Allura returned just as quietly, reaching to grip one of his hands in hers. "I'd always wondered. None of them would tell me. I suppose I'd always assumed that...when you were ready...you'd tell me about that night."

"I will. I'll tell all of you. I- especially want Keith to understand why. I can't stand the thought of him thinking I've ever harbored a single ugly thought toward him."

"I can't imagine he thinks anything of the kind. I'm sure he just reacted without thinking. He'll let you explain yourself. I assume you're- a bit more clear-headed now," she pressed in a half-questioning tone.

"I think so, though that might not be true. I was crazy enough to make you come all the way down here," he said with a helpless shrug. "I'm sorry."

"None of that. None of that. I'm always happy to see you, Shiro. Always," she said, her words fading off at the end as she slid a foot out from under the blanket to trail in the water next to his tail. "You know...it was a lot like this...on the night we met."

"A lot like what?" he asked, looking down at her again.

"No moon, and the stars wheeling overhead like they were dancing through the black. I was out on the beach that night...dancing with them...before you came into my life," she recounted, her voice quiet and distracted as she drew furrows along the water with her toes. "Shiro?"

"Hmm?" he murmured back, mesmerized by the sight of her golden brown skin against his own darkly flashing scales.

"Let's go for a swim," she said, tone instantly brightening.

"W-what?" he asked, finally hearing what it was she'd actually said to him. "Now? _Right_ now?"

"Yes now. I think you should see the shooting stars," she said, shifting so that the blanket slid from their shoulders.

"But- in the middle of the night- out on the water? Allura, you'll _freeze_ ," he argued, trying to pull the blanket back up.

"No, I won't. Not with you. You _know_ that. Come on. Let's go," she insisted with a giggle, extricating herself from his arms. Sitting so close to him, the wet from his own body had dampened her nightgown, and he couldn't help being distracted by the way the diaphanous pink silk _clung_ to her body. He was helpless to do anything but watch as she slid gracefully into the water, her white tresses floating out around her in a cloudy halo. Shiro had acknowledged that he found the princess beautiful, and he'd always tried to pass it off as part of being a healthy young merman with healthy sexual appetites, but now – something was different. Shiro couldn't manage to snap out of his trance until he heard the distinct sound of Allura's teeth chattering.

"Y-you know...I s-said I w-wouldn't- freeze, but...for this to w-work, you d-do actually have to- to join me," she stuttered out, looking up at him with a teasing smile.

"Right! Of course. Sorry," he said, the last a near squeak as he slid back into the water beside her.

Pulling her close to his body once more, he waited for her shivering to subside. The nearness of her did absolutely nothing to ease the sudden swell of desire in his body. He could feel the softness of her body against his through that damnably thin fabric. When he felt the familiar sensation of his member beginning to stiffen within him, he was suddenly fiercely glad to be a mermyd. If the stories of human men he'd heard were any indication, his arousal would be plainly obvious to the princess were he human. Even so, it took an act of supreme self-control to prevent himself from stiffening to the point that his member just slid from his body. Deciding that the intensity of the arousal was some combination of his earlier activities and wine, Shiro began to fin his way out of the cave, hoping he might be able to swim it off.

Rather than swim around to the beach side of the cave mouth that was visible from the castle, Shiro swam around the opposite side, over into a more protected cove, where the water was much gentler than the breakers that could sometimes crash along the beach. Once they were far enough out on the water, Shiro shifted onto his back, while Allura shifted to lie with her back against his chest, her head pillowed just below his neck. Cradling her firmly in his arms, he allowed them to drift through the calm water, barely steering their course with the occasional flick of his tail.

Allura hadn't been lying about the stars seeming to dance. Without the light of the moon to interfere, he could see more stars than he could ever hope to count. Seeing the night sky like this, it was almost laughable to say that it was merely black. The heavens were lit with trails of stardust in every shade from pink and blue to yellow and orange, occasionally broken by ribbons of pure white light as the shooting stars streaked by overhead. In the naming of the Starlight Caves, Shiro imagined that _this_ was the sight someone had thought the iridescent stone resembled, but it in no way compared with true starlight. There was nothing quite like this moment in all of creation, suspended between the depths of the ocean and the infinite vastness of the star-scattered sky with Allura held tenderly in his arms. Shiro actually felt the prick of tears in his eyes at the hushed beauty of it all.

"It's so beautiful," Allura whispered, and despite the softness of her words, Shiro still felt them tremble in his chest. Glancing down, he could just barely make out the awed expression on her face. Allura's eyes were _always_ beautiful, always the best of both dark and bright, but now, with starlight mirrored so perfectly in them, Shiro knew that he would never believe anything else beautiful again. He had seen beauty here tonight and nothing else would ever match it.

 _ **You're**_ _beautiful,_ he wanted to whisper back to her, feeling something bloom and break in his heart, overriding all other physical sensations in his body. He felt the words rise in his chest, wanted to set them free, but knew that he couldn't. Instead, he began to sing wordlessly, releasing this unbidden feeling in the only way he could. He knew the words to the song, of course, but he couldn't give voice to them. If he sang them for her, she would _know._

 _And I'd give up forever to touch you_

 _'Cuz I know that you feel me somehow_

 _You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be_

 _And I don't wanna go home right now_

 _And all I can taste is this moment_

 _And all I can breathe is your light_

 _When sooner or later it's over_

 _I just don't wanna miss you tonight_

He didn't know how he hadn't _known_ before now. Or...maybe he _had_ known, only hadn't wanted to admit it to himself. After all, how could someone like _him_ love someone like _her?_ Guard or no, he was no one. He had nothing to offer her, nothing but the love that filled his heart, and that wasn't enough. In this world of royalty and politics, it would _never_ be enough. All he could really do was choke on his love, drowning here with both air and water so near at hand as he sang without words.

 _And I don't want the world to see me_

 _'Cuz I don't think that they'd understand_

 _When everything's made to be broken_

 _I just want you to know who I am_

Twining his fingers together with hers, he drew their arms outward along the face of the water, floating, falling, flying in this small moment between sky and sea – the only place they could ever truly be together. He'd come here hoping for solace and a bit of guidance, but had instead found a truth and pain greater than what he'd already experienced. With silent tears flowing down his face, he felt the irony of the next words as he held them in his thoughts.

 _And you can't fight the tears that ain't comin'_

 _Or the moment of truth in your lies_

 _When everything feels like the stories_

 _Yeah, you bleed just to know you're alive_

There was nothing he could do. He could never hope to be worthy of someone like Allura – a boy who wasn't strong enough to save his parents or protect his brother. He was just a palace orphan. He could never be the knight she needed or deserved. All he could really do was strive to be better. Even if there was no hope of winning her love, he could at least work to be a man who might one day be worthy of it, and the first step to that...was being selfless enough to let her go. It was loving her enough not to reveal this truth he'd discovered within himself, not to force his feelings on her. So, swallowing down the tears he had yet to shed, Takashi Shirogane sang out the last of his song, no less beautiful for the loss of its tender words.

 _And I don't want the world to see me_

 _'Cuz I don't think that they'd understand_

 _When everything's made to be broken_

 _I just want you to know who I am_

 _I just want you to know who I am_

"Shiro, that was beautiful," Allura praised the moment he'd left off singing. "Are...are there words?"

"There were...once. I don't remember them anymore," he lied.

"You may have to come up with some new ones. A melody that lovely deserves lyrics."

"Heh, I'll think about it," he said with a soft laugh, careful not to let her know that anything had changed between them. Continuing to gaze up at the stars, he told Allura everything he remembered from the night they'd met as they trailed indeterminate paths through the water. He didn't carry her back until the sky had begun to lighten and she'd started to fall asleep in his arms.

XxX

When Keith was first stirred from his sleep, he briefly forgot where he was, expecting to be dragged from the trainee dormitories for some sort of early morning training. But then he saw Shiro floating over him and he remembered.

He wasn't actually in the trainee dormitories.

Lance had come after him after he'd fled last night, calmed him down, and insisted he stay with him for the night. So that was where he was, tangled up in Lance's hammock with the other boy snoring loudly next to him. When he became fully aware of Shiro above them, he shrank a little further against Lance.

"Keith," Shiro began upon seeing he was awake, his face etched with sadness, "I'm sorry."

"You should be," Lance's angry voice came from just behind him. Keith didn't know what had stirred the youngest prince, but he was glad Lance was awake.

"Why...why would you say something like that?" Keith made himself ask, barely able to look up at Shiro. "I...I thought..."

"I said it because the Galra _are_ monsters. That is a fact. They were brought into this world through forbidden magic," Shiro explained gently. "They _are_ monsters, but _you_ are _not_. You've been just as hurt by what's happened as anyone, and I want you to _understand why._ "

"W- what do you mean?" Keith asked, noticing for the first time that Hunk and the twins were with Shiro.

"No one's ever told you what happened that night. _I've_ never told you what happened to my family. Allura and I talked about it last night and we think you're old enough to know. Will you- come with me?" Shiro asked haltingly as he held out a hand, eyes pleading. After several glances between his eyes and his hand, Keith finally nodded.

"Okay," he said softly, taking his guardian's hand and allowing him to pull him from the hammock. Lance was right behind them, swimming as close as he could without bumping into either of them. Hunk, Rax, and Shay didn't take long to fall in behind them either.

Shiro led them silently through the castle, into the Guard tower, swimming up through the levels, from the trainee dorms at the base all the way up to the upper limits, where the most respected and experienced members of the Guard had their quarters. When they initially came to a stop, it was outside a set of apartments that was concealed by a curtain of black fabric, rather than the normal strands of kelp.

"I...I don't think we can go in there," Hunk said, stopping short at the sight of the black curtain.

"It's all right," Shiro said without looking at any of them. "Consecrated or no, it is my _right_ to be here, and I say you can all enter," he finished, leading the way past the black curtain.

Inside was a room that looked not to have been disturbed for many years. Moss had begun to grow on several of the surfaces and some of the less hardy metals had started to tarnish, oxidizing with the effect of the water. Really, it didn't seem like a home at first, but the further in Shiro led them, the more details began to emerge from the rot of years – vases, reliefs carved into the walls, the remains of a lattice and an overgrown harp, a shelf full of faded tonespheres. Keith gasped quietly when he noticed a carved whale toy beneath a fine layer of moss, moving inadvertently closer to Shiro's side.

"Shiro...what is this place?" Lance was the one to finally ask. When they all looked up at the new Guardsman, it was to see a haunted, saddened look on his face.

"These were the apartments of Ulaz and Luxia Shirogane...where they lived with their son...Takashi," he narrated in a distant voice, as if recounting a story told to him. "They've been left as they were on that night...all this time...to honor the sacrifice they made."

"Your parents?" Hunk asked. "What...what happened to them?"

"The queen was sick," Shiro began, looking around the place that had once been his home as he spoke, slowly drifting away from them. "Nothing Gyrgan had tried had worked. It seemed like there was nothing anyone could do. They were even preparing to crown Acxa queen...even though she wasn't seventeen yet. Haggar was the one to offer a solution."

"Haggar? You- you mean the Sea Witch?" Rax asked fearfully. As if mention of how close his mother had come to dying wasn't fearful enough, now their guardian was speaking of one of the Outcast Ones.

"Yes. The one whose name is forbidden. I only dare speak it here because of _where_ we are...to honor my parents...because it was to them the Witch came. She said she needed _me_ to complete a ritual that could be used to save the queen."

"You?" Keith asked, swimming toward Shiro as if to take his hand again, but stopped by the far off look in his eyes. "But...why you?"

"I don't know. I've never known. I don't know if _anyone_ knows. She just said...I could help. But my parents refused...so the King ran my father through and the Witch attacked my mother with magic."

"Oh!" Shay gasped in horror, covering her mouth with her hands. "They killed them?"

"No," Shiro said, continuing in the same calm, distant voice. "So much was the worse. They were only injured enough that they might have lived... _if_ I helped the Witch complete the ritual. If they died...if they died it would be _my_ _fault..._ " he whispered, the tone sharp enough to sting all of their ears as his voice tapered off. For a moment, all he could seem to do was stare at his hands, looking at something none of them could see with an expression they were all too young to truly fathom.

"Shiro..." Hunk started, but like the others, he didn't seem to know what to say.

"There's a well of power- very far from here...deep in the Naxzela Rift. I hear them call it Quintessence. Whatever this well is, it was sealed up long ago to keep the world in balance. The Witch said- that if we could open the well, we would find the power to cure the queen, and to heal my parents...so I went with them. Their plan- was to sacrifice my life upon the well in order to break it open."

They all gave horrified cries and gasps at this. To think that _their_ Shiro would give up his own life like this – but then, they knew him. Of course they did, and of course he would've given his life. To help someone he loved, he wouldn't have hesitated. For several minutes, they were all too horror-stricken to press him for more information and he seemed too lost in his own thoughts to offer up anything else, but they did manage to continue in the end.

"What happened?" Lance was the one to finally make himself ask.

"I- I'm not certain. I remember how she began...with a bone-carven knife...and I remember panicking...but nothing more after that. When I came to, I was in the Betwixt with Allura and the others," he recounted, still not looking at any of them. "How Honerva explained it to me is that the unleashed Quintessence was channeling through me. She was healed, but...because the ritual wasn't completed, that power was trapped in my body."

"And that's why you have healing magic," Shay finished when he couldn't. He nodded slowly, still not with them in the moment, still lost in the telling of his life.

"Yes. It was what Haggar was seeking, but now that power's trapped in our world and every time I use it, a few more of my hairs turn white," he explained as he ran his fingers through the streak of white in his hair. When they'd all been much younger, it had only been a forelock. Now it ran nearly to the back of his head.

"And...what happens if it _all_ goes white?" Rax demanded quietly.

"No one knows," Shiro said with a self-deprecating chuckle. "Perhaps the power will simply be returned to the well, but I don't think the crime we committed can be atoned for that easily. The queen believes I will die...that the ritual will finally be completed."

"Shiro! No. _No!_ " Hunk started with another horrified gasp.

"I'm afraid it's a very distinct possibility," Shiro said with a shake of his head.

"But...you used that power to _save me,_ " Keith whispered, looking down at his own hands as if he'd never seen them before. That _his life_ had been paid for with a piece of Shiro's...

"And me...and Mama," Lance's pained voice joined with his. The prince knew the story of his birth, of course.

"That's true, and I'm glad for it. I failed my parents, but I swore I wouldn't fail anyone else...and I failed _you_ last night," Shiro said, finally looking up at Keith.

"Shiro..." Keith started, though he didn't know what else to say, feeling he'd overreacted before – _badly._

"I didn't see it happen, but they say the Galra were what was sent through the well...as punishment for our transgressions. They _are_ monsters, but they only exist because of what _we did_...and I'm sorry for that. Maybe you could've had a normal life if this hadn't happened...been born to a mother and a natural father who loved you."

"Shiro, that's not-"

"I don't know if you remember, but I didn't say that the Galra had to pay for anything _they_ did. Just for what happened. The Galra didn't kill my parents. Haggar and Zarkon didn't kill my parents. It was I myself that did that...because I failed. _Mine_ is the crime that needs to be atoned for," he explained, holding Keith's gaze with his own.

"Shiro, you can't-" Lance tried to interrupt.

"Believe me, I'd be _happy_ to give this power to all of you, to the queen, to Allura, to our soldiers in the field facing this threat _I_ helped create. If giving my life could truly save a lot of people, then I'd-"

" _NO!_ " Keith suddenly snarled, bursting across the water toward him and flinging his arms around the older mermyd's waist. "Just because you think the sacrifice might be worth it, _don't throw your life away!_ We need you here with us!" he cried out as he buried his face in his surrogate brother's stomach, clinging to him for all he was worth. "We _need_ you."

Shiro immediately began to stroke his hair and pat his back, comforting him as best he could. Slowly, the others gathered around them and enfolded them both in a large group hug.

"Don't worry," Shiro said softly when he'd finally prompted Keith into looking back up at him. "I won't let you down. I'll do what I can while I can still do it."

Keith shook his head, scrubbing a fist over his reddened eyes as he smiled up at his guardian. It wasn't a promise to live – nowhere near, really. But he suspected he'd have to take what he could get with Shiro, and just do his best never to give him cause to use those powers that had already cost him so much.

XxX

(A/N) So, interesting subject I was chatting with my wife about the other day. To me, it didn't seem like the age difference between Shiro and the other paladins was all that noticeable. It's noticeable here. It's been very interesting for me to write them all at these ages. I've had to constantly remind myself of the age gap to avoid writing the younger characters as older than they're supposed to be, and I don't know that I've always succeeded. Heheh.

And of course, the music for this chapter is 'Iris' by the Goo Goo Dolls, the inspiration for the story title. And yes, for those of you who were wondering how this was going to work (and you _were_ wondering, don't lie, you mer-loving fiends ;) we're going to be going with a somewhat dolphin-like anatomy for this 'verse. As always, I hope you continue to enjoy.


	4. Far Away in Starlight

(A/N) Wow, guys, I am so sorry I wasn't able to post last weekend. Colorado Anime Fest was going down and, as I'm sure a lot of you know, con time gets pretty crazy. Good times were had, though, and now here we are with a nice new chapter. To this, all I can say is...I surely hope you have enjoyed your warm fluffy feels. Now the real angst begins.

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 4: Far Away in Starlight_

 _Though he had gotten off to a rough start, the young merman proved to be just as steadfast a Guardsman as everyone had expected. He was soon rising through the ranks, ultimately becoming second in command. And as the war with the Galra continued to drag on, even the captain of the Guard was called into battle, and upon his departure from Arus, the young merman became the acting captain of the Guardsmen remaining within the city._

 _As they grew, the members of his little pod also grew from being under his constant care into the beginning stages of their own paths within their city. The young princess began training with the chief physician as a healer, while her twin moved toward infrastructure, learning exactly how the city of Arus was built and how it might be improved in the future. The chief engineer's son began his studies with his mother, learning the science and alchemy behind the systems that controlled the city's currents and filtration. And of course, the young part-mermyd had his ever intense training as a rising candidate for the Guard._

 _The youngest prince was the only one among them who had not properly chosen a discipline. He'd never found something he truly loved like the others. Sometimes he would train in statecraft with the oldest princess, sometimes in healing with the youngest. Some days he would study city maps with his older brother and others he would study music with their oldest brother, the rising leader of the court musicians. Other times it would be the underworkings of the city with his best friend and middle sister, and on days when he was woefully unconfident in his own abilities, he would even take etiquette and comportment lessons from his second oldest sister. Really, the only two disciplines he hadn't properly tried his hand at were arms training and sorcery._

 _Training as a sorcerer had always held a certain amount of fear for the young prince. After all, he knew the fate of the previous chief sorceress and he had seen how her meddling had affected the lives of the people he loved most. Though it was plain he had the gift and was capable of developing talents greater than simple far sight, the notion of actually reaching out and touching that power was frightening to him. Arms training he stayed away from because...well...he was also afraid of admitting to himself just how much he wanted to spend time with his part-mermyd friend._

 _Little did he know, however, that the young half-blood was often thinking of_ _ **him,**_ _too._

XxX

Keith grunted in pain as another tail impacted with his body. The physical hurt of a beating he was used to by this point. The sting that never quite went away, though, was the barb of their insults.

"Fin face!"

"Half-breed!"

"They don't really want you."

"You should go back outside."

"Better yet, go drown in the filtration tunnels."

"I bet the only reason they keep you is so the princes can use you as a net slave."

"Heheh, yeah. The youngest one, they say he's starting to get around almost as much as the oldest prince," one of them said, holding the trainee's arms wide so the others could pummel his gut.

"Think maybe they do him together?" a girl's voice suggested.

"That's disgusting. Wouldn't shock me, though. A son of the old king's is bound to be fucked in the head. The little one can't be much better."

"Heh, little netling."

 _That_ one grabbed Keith's attention like none of the other insults had. Lashing free, his clawed hand shot forward to seize the fist moving toward him, sharp points digging into his tormentor's helpless flesh. The half-mermyd growled in anger as the fist's owner cried out in pain.

"Slander _my_ name all you like," he snarled, his fangs displaying prominently as he pulled his tormentor in close to him, "but of the prince, _don't you say a word!_ "

Then, with a single snap of his powerful body, the sixteen-year-old was free, lashing out at his captors with several powerful blows from his tail. The pathetic creatures all fled from him with squeals of fright, disappearing clumsily back into the kelp forest. The sounds of their cowardly departure were soon overtaken by Shiro's quiet laughter. Keith glanced over his shoulder to see the older mermyd swimming toward him through the kelp strands.

"I wonder if they know how easily they got off?" Shiro mused as he approached. "Those claws could have torn every last one of them to ribbons."

"Sir," Keith began with a deferential dip of his head, his long black hair swirling briefly about. Most trainees wore their hair short, but Keith had always been permitted to keep his longer so his Galra headfins wouldn't be quite so prominent.

"Enough, Keith. You know you don't have to do that," Shiro said as he began to inspect his bruises.

"Can't help it," the teen said with a small sigh and a shake of his head. "It's too deeply ingrained. You'd do it, too."

Again, Shiro chuckled, this time a bit more self-deprecatingly. "You're probably right."

"What are you doing here?"

"I might ask you the same, trainee," Shiro returned, raising an eyebrow as he looked up at Keith.

"A little tooth and claw work on my own," he answered. It was always good to keep his full arsenal of weapons in top form, but it sometimes bothered his fellow trainees to see him work with his claws, so he tended to do the work away from prying eyes. "Your turn."

"City patrol reported a disturbance in the forest. I came to investigate. You know, you have every right to report these incidents, Keith," Shiro told him, his expression softening into something sorrowing and worried. "Disrespect to _any_ member of the Guard is punishable under the law. You shouldn't let them get away with these things."

"I _would_ report them if I thought it would stop them from happening," Keith lied, rubbing at his arms to get the feeling back in them. "But we both know it wouldn't change anything. There will always be people angered by the idea of one of the _enemy_ in the Guard. Others...well...some others just _need_ someone to beat."

"You're _not_ the enemy," Shiro insisted vehemently as he forced him to look up at him, both to look him in the eye and to examine the black eye blossoming on his face. "I would lay into anyone who said otherwise to my face."

"I know you would," Keith returned with a sigh. He'd seen him do it, too. It hadn't been pretty. "But how many people _will_ say it to your face? _My_ face, on the other hand...that's just not of much consequence."

Shiro's expression slanted at this, silently scolding Keith for the old habit of talking down on himself. Instead of commenting on it, though, he asked, "What was it that made you fight back? I've known you to just lie back and take a beating for an hour. What was different tonight?"

At this, Keith blushed lightly, glancing down at the sand as he flicked his tail nervously. "They insulted Lance."

"Oh," Shiro started. "I see."

"They called him a- a netling," Keith broke off, barely able to make himself repeat the foul slur. "They can say what they want about me; I don't care, but _that..._ I- I just- I _won't have it,_ " he snarled, feeling his fangs bare reflexively in his anger. That anyone was cruel enough to say such disgusting things about kind, caring, funny, annoying, adorable, infuriating Lance – just the _idea_ of it made him ill.

"You know, I _would_ say that's what will make you the most faithful of the Guardsmen, but somehow I don't think it has much to do with that," Shiro said as he began to lead the way back toward the lights of Arus.

"I don't- know what you mean," Keith stuttered out, continuing to look down at the sand as he fell in line with his captain.

"Oh, I think you do," Shiro continued in an almost scolding tone, but then that tone softened into something more pitying. "Keith...don't you think I see the way you look at him?"

"What does it matter?" Keith bit out, never truly having given voice or a name to his exact feelings toward the prince. "He's a prince. I'm just-"

"Training to enter one of the most prestigious guilds in this city. It won't be much longer before you come of age, Keith...before you ascend as a full member of the Guard. It's not as if Lance is very near the throne. You'll be of equal rank. I know you, little one. That isn't what bothers you," he said, reverting to one of the old childhood names to signify the informality of this conversation. "So what is?"

Keith swallowed as he looked up at the distant lights of the royal palace, pulling in several gulps of water as he tried to phrase exactly what it was he was feeling.

"I grew up out in the open water. Staying alive out there means holding onto everything that comes your way like it's your last breath. I'm still like that...sometimes. I hold onto the things that keep me alive. You...and the pod...Lance...that friendship- it's just...Lance has never been like me. He gives without any thought of keeping for himself. When you all- found me, he didn't see the fins on my head...just that my ribs were sticking out. I remember...he offered me some of his own food. That was madness in my mind...still is sometimes. Now I feel like- maybe it's the same with his friendship...that it's madness for him to just give it to me, without thought to what I am or whether he'll get anything back. I don't know how to be like that, so I hold onto his friendship...and think probably it's wrong of me to want anything more. I don't know what would happen if I gave up friendship for...something else," he finished, not wanting to give this feeling its proper name. If he did that, it would be real, and he didn't know if he could deal with it if he went that far. "I'm not making any sense, am I."

"No. You make perfect sense to me," Shiro said, slowly coming to a stop. "But I would ask you...who you think you hurt by not giving him the choice of giving you more than friendship. Just yourself?"

"Well...no," Keith admitted. He'd never thought of this in that light before – that maybe by not letting Lance see how he felt, it wasn't just himself he was punishing.

"If that alone doesn't convince you to go to him, the only advice I can offer you is this. Try to be better."

"What- what do you mean?" Keith pressed when Shiro didn't continue.

"I mean if you don't feel like you have anything worth giving him, you should try to be someone who does," Shiro explained, his gaze distant as he spoke. "If you strive to be better than you are, then maybe someday you'll feel you have a version of yourself that's worthy to give to someone else. If you still feel selfish asking for his love, ask yourself this. Would you still want to make him happy, even if you _weren't_ happy?" his surrogate brother finished with a small, sad smile. As Keith looked at him, he was struck by a flash of realization.

"You're not- just talking about me and Lance...are you."

Shiro said nothing, just continued to smile that same helpless smile.

"Allura?" he asked. Had he really not seen it before now?

Still Shiro didn't respond, only shrugged before heading off in the direction of the palace once again. And if Keith hadn't felt selfish before, he certainly did now for failing to see what his brother had as good as told him. How had he not noticed that Shiro was in love? He would have to ask Hunk or Shay about it.

XxX

"Y'know, it really is too bad Shay and Rax couldn't come," Matt said as he rolled over on the sand, staring up at the dimming twilit sky. "Shay really wanted to be here."

"I know. It's not their fault, though," Hunk defended, lifting his tail up out of the surf to dribble some water over his head and shoulders. "We've still got a lot of wounded coming in from the last battle. They needed everybody."

"I'm a little surprised they didn't want _me_ to stick around," Lance added. "I may not be a full medic, but I've at least got the patch training they need."

"Oh, you know, the other healers just couldn't take another day of your bad jokes," Keith ribbed good-naturedly, shifting his body further out of the water and closer to the small bonfire burning on the beach.

"Right. They'd probably lose more myds than they'd save. Those puns could kill a grown man," Pidge joined in, putting the finishing touches on her roasting stick, a piece of driftwood which she'd somehow pierced with no less than _twelve_ marshmallows.

They all knew how fascinated Hunk was with human cooking, so the three of them always gave him some new treat for his birthday. This year it was these amazing new puff confections that were being sold in the street markets of Altea. They were typically sold in bags or in hot drinks, but Matt had also accidentally discovered how much fun it was to roast them. So Hunk's small birthday celebration this year had been a roasting party. Most of them had already eaten their fill of the gooey treat, but Pidge and Hunk were still going strong. Shiro was also roasting a final pair of marshmallows for himself and Allura. Hunk, Keith, and Lance were all still positioned fairly close to the water side of the fire, but Shiro had pulled himself completely up out of the water and was sitting beside the princess. No one commented on it, of course, but by this point, they couldn't fail to see the way Shiro leaned nearer to Allura, or the way her splayed fingers rested on the sand just beside his tail, as if itching to cross that final distance.

"Come on, you guys. You all know Shay just wanted Hunk to be able to spend his birthday with his best friend," Shiro eased the teasing as he pulled the marshmallows back to have a look at them. Still not satisfied with the outer layers, he stuck them back in the flames.

"Yeah, but what about spending it with the girl he _loooves_ ," Matt chimed back in, throwing a knowing smirk Hunk's way as he rolled onto his side.

"Hey, come on. Don't do that," Hunk tried to stave him off, blushing violently as he pulled his own crop of roasted sugar back from the fire. "Shay- Shay's a princess."

"And what are you? Chopped barnacle? Your parents aren't exactly unimportant in Arus," Shiro reminded him. "Someday you'll be chief engineer yourself."

"But...she's your sister," Hunk whined quietly to Lance, who just shook his head and grinned.

"And I keep telling you I don't mind. Rax might, but everyone else thinks it's sweet. Besides, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks, does it. So long as it's what you and Shay want, it's nobody else's business. If you don't ask her to share a meal soon, she's going to beat you to it. Just saying," Lance finished with a shrug.

"On that subject, I've actually got one more present for you," Shiro said, keeping hold of his roasting stick with one hand while using the other to reach into the pouch at his belt. "Shay wasn't sure she'd be able to get away to see you today, so she gave me your gift when I was in with the last division. Happy birthday from Shay, Hunk. She made this herself," he said as he pulled the gift from the pouch. It was a length of orange ribbon meant to be worn as a headband. Right where the band would rest on the left temple were sewn three small trinkets. The first was a chip of whale tooth carved in the shape of a blue whale, the symbol of the healers' guild. The second was a tiny carved nautilus shell, the symbol of the mer engineers' guild. The last was a simple infinity braid, seeming to have been woven from Shay's own silvery-gray hair. Hunk inhaled a slow, reverent breath as he took the gift from Shiro, eyes going impossibly wide.

"Oh, that- that did it," Hunk sniffled, taking a moment to wipe the clear signs of tears from his face before tying the band around his head. "I- I'm gonna do it. I'll bring her her next meal when she gets some rest time."

"There's the spirit," Shiro encouraged with a smile, but that smile was soon going pensive and distant. "And take that time for what it's worth. Who knows when we'll all be together again."

The group gave a collective sigh at this, knowing only too well how right he was. It had been many months since they'd all been able to come together like this, and it would likely be many months more before they could manage it again. Life and the war were pulling them all in their own directions.

"Be careful there, Shiro. You're gonna wilt those marshmallows with all your serious talk," Pidge teased lightly as she withdrew her own stick from the fire, immediately chomping down on a perfectly toasted marshmallow of her own.

"Heh, right. Of course," the acting captain conceded, withdrawing the two blackened treats from the fire and giving them a moment to cool before offering one to Allura, who ate it directly off the stick, moaning quietly in pleasure as she allowed the warm, practically liquid sugar to melt and dribble all over her tongue. Shiro visibly gulped at the intensity of the sound and everyone else had to struggle not to giggle at the display.

"I don't know how you do it, Shiro, but everything you roast comes out _perfectly,_ " Allura exhaled, licking a small dribble of white from the corner of her mouth. Rather than respond, Shiro awkwardly shoved his own marshmallow in his mouth, hardly seeming to taste it before swallowing again.

"Well...you're welcome. Unfortunately, I- I think it's time we were all heading back," he choked out, tone shifting from awkward to saddened in the space of a few heartbeats as he shifted on the sand to take Allura's hand in his. "The raids have been getting worse and I wouldn't want to be caught out too long after dark," he finished as the last vestiges of sunlight left the sky.

"I- we- understand," Allura said semi-formally, but then she pulled the mer captain into a hug. "I will miss you...desperately. All of you."

Shiro returned her embrace just as fiercely, burying his face in her silvery hair for the briefest of moments. "I will come to you as soon as I can, my friend...and I will think of you every moment...Allura... _vi ma prinscia_ ," he whispered to her before pulling back. Waving to Matt and Pidge, Shiro quickly flipped himself back into the water before Allura could glimpse just how red his face was.

"That...language..." Allura started slowly as the others exchanged their goodbyes. "I've heard him say that before. What is that he calls me?" she asked her friends.

"It's Old Mermysh," Lance explained as he exchanged a firm hand clasp with Matt. "It was the language of our mer ancestors, the side that was purely aquatic. It became the language of the old poets and the philosophers. I guess your father wouldn't have it in his libraries because it's never had a written form. Shiro knows it from his mother, and from his studies with the Guard."

"Yeah, but what was he _saying?_ " Pidge pressed as she went around hugging each of them, always eager for new information.

"My only princess," Keith finally answered, glancing sideways at Lance. "That's what he calls you." Then he was gone, too, slipped beneath the waves as completely as his guardian.

Allura's cheeks flushed pink as she reached a hand up to touch the place where Shiro's lips had touched her ear, her eyes glimmering. She shivered briefly before snapping awake from her near-trance, hugging herself as she climbed to her feet. "That's- lovely. This has been fun. Please be sure to give the twins a hug for us," she finished with a smile.

"Can do," Lance said with a grin of his own. "Though Hunk might do more," he finished before flipping back into the water.

" _Lance!_ " Hunk shouted indignantly before following after him. The three humans chuckled faintly.

"Y'know, I don't think twelve marshmallows is enough," Pidge decided as she hopped up from the sand, clearly buzzing on sugar. "I need to be able to fit more on a stick."

"Heh, you go work on that then, little pigeon," Allura encouraged, slowly beginning to follow after the thirteen-year-old.

"Allura?" Matt called after her when his sister was just out of earshot. When Allura looked back, she saw that he still hadn't risen from the sand. His eyes appeared glazed and distant as he gazed into the dying embers of the fire.

"Yes?"

"You know...for all we tease Hunk and Shay...even Keith and Lance...we never seem to talk about you and Shiro. Why is that?" he asked, finally looking up at her across the fire.

"What is there to talk about?"

"Anything? Everything? Or do you think we're all idiots? Don't you think we see the way you two look at each other?" he asked her.

"Matthew... _please_...don't do this," she pleaded quietly as she sat down beside him. "There's no- no point. It's just- not possible."

"Why isn't it? It's like he was telling Hunk. He's not unimportant in Arus. He has rank. And it's not like humans and myds can't-"

"I _know_ ," she snapped at him, having no wish to go down that road with someone who was like a brother to her. "Believe me, I'm aware. I know the tales; I've seen the anatomical studies. If you think for one instant that I haven't _dreamed_ of-" here she cut herself off, forcefully pushing back the unbidden fantasy of Shiro lying on the sand, hair damp with sweat instead of sea water, panting, his manhood on full display- _stop that!_ "What matter?" she made herself ask. "Humans and mermyds can- _mate-_ all they like. They can come together in the space between, but they cannot live together. Not really. Why would you ask me to torture him with a dream of something that can never be? I cannot do that to him. I _won't!_ I...I love him too much...to be so cruel. Takashi Shirogane deserves better than that."

"Then you _do_ love him," Matt pressed victoriously, leaving Allura to realize that it was the first time she'd ever given voice to it.

"Of _course_ I do. How could I not?"

 _He's perfect._

"Then _tell him!_ Can't you see how it's killing him? Not being able to share his feelings with you? You two are my second home. You've always been there, before everyone else was. I can't watch you two beat yourselves up over this anymore."

At this, Allura sighed heavily. "You are very young, Matt."

"I'm only four years younger than you," he protested.

"I'm sure it still seems very simple to you. If we love each other, what should stand between us? The fact is we both have our own obligations to keep. My father has no other children. There is no one else who could take the crown when- when he is gone. I cannot leave my people behind for Shiro, much as I might wish otherwise. And I could hardly ask him to leave behind the life he knows for _my_ sake. He is a pillar of the Guard. His duty is to Honerva and the royal family. Even if it were _possible_ , how could I ask him to give all of that up...just for me?"

"Just?" Matt repeated with disdain. "What _just?_ You really don't see the way he looks at you, do you?"

"What- what way is that?" she asked, her shoulders slumping in misery.

"The same way _you_ look at _him_. Like he's your world. You _are_ the world to him, Allura. I don't get why you can't see that."

"Even if that were true...there's still no way for us to truly _be_ together. Have you figured that one out yet, oh brilliant one?" she snapped at him.

"I didn't say I had an answer to the problem yet. I just...it seems to me like we need to take these things as they come at us. More of the merpeople are dying every day. How long's it going to be before Keith comes to us to lay Shiro's spear at your feet? To tell us how bravely he fought against impossible odds? To carry his last words to _you?_ Just to you. Do you want Takashi to die not knowing how much you love him?" Matt demanded of her as he leapt to his feet, towering over her, his sudden movement casting flecks of sand onto the dying embers and calling up an insidious crackle.

" _No! Stop it!_ " Allura cried out, jerking her head down and covering her ears with her hands. She had seen Shiro near death once already, and even that had been too much. She didn't doubt that it would happen someday. Shiro was too giving, too self-sacrificing for it to be otherwise. But the thought of seeing him lying dead, never to smile up at her again, never to see those lovely eyes shine with joy, or hear that warm wonderful voice call her name...to never hold him again? That was too much to bear.

"I...Allura, I'm sorry," he mumbled, and she could hear the wince in his voice. "I didn't mean to...you just...I didn't know how else to get through to you," he said. She could barely keep herself from flinching when he laid a hand on her shoulder.

"No...I know why you did," she said quietly, not quite looking up at him. "It's just...you were only a baby that night. You didn't see him- after what Haggar did to him. I remember. I remember every injury, every scar. I remember how close to dying he was. And what did he do? He tried to soothe your crying. He healed a cut on my foot. _None_ of you have seen him at his true lowest, but I have. _I know_ how easily he would give up his life for something he believed in. It's pain to me...how little he values his own life," she tried to explain, only then feeling the hot tracks of tears on her face. She'd never really spoken these fears aloud to anyone before now.

"Well..." Matt started, briefly gripping her shoulder a little tighter, "maybe you could knock some sense into him."

"Maybe," she conceded with a small smile. Then she patted his hand before climbing back to her feet. "I'll think about what you've said."

Her younger friend offered her a relieved smile at this. "Well, it's not nothing. I'll take what I can get with the pair of you."

"Shall we be heading back?"

"Nah. You need some rest. You go on ahead. I'll wait for the tide. It won't be long now," he said, referring to the time it would take for the tide to rise high enough to smother what was left of their little fire. Already a few of the embers had begun to smoke and hiss upon being kissed by the rising lip of the surf.

"All right. Just don't stay out all night," she warned him, knowing that tended to happen whenever he got in one of his nature walk moods. He could stay up to all hours studying bats and salamanders and moon seals.

"Promise."

XxX

Keith couldn't say what it was, but something had his nerves on edge as the four young mermen swam through the darkening waters. Lance and Hunk chatted amiably away, completely unaware, but Keith could tell that Shiro was aware of something, too. Just when the trainee thought he might go mad with worry, Shiro threw an arm across Hunk's chest, stopping him dead. Keith quickly grabbed Lance's arm, yanking him out of his forward motion.

"Hey! What was that for?" Lance started to snap at him.

"Shh!" Shiro shushed all of them urgently. "Something's not right here."

"W- what's going on?" Hunk started up in mild panic, glancing all around.

Shiro didn't respond. He only moved out in front of the prince and his friend, keeping a sharp eye on the waters above and below them while Keith moved to guard the rear of the group, dagger in hand.

The attack they were waiting for came when Shiro was suddenly pierced in the side by a barb from a harpoon gun. Crying out sharply in pain, the Guardsman reflexively veered away from his charges to keep them from being harmed by the fishing line the barb was attached to. Keith followed the line to its source, eyes beholding something he'd never expected to see.

He'd expected Galra, of course, and he got that – a squad of five or so. But they were backed by a group of four beings Keith immediately recognized as being half-bloods like himself. There were three young women, two he didn't know and one he did. The first was broad-shouldered with a deep blue eel tail scattered with flecks of lighter blue. A cloud of short pink hair framed her snarling features and threw her dark headfins into sharp relief. The second was much lighter-skinned than her compatriot, lighter-scaled as well, with a patterning nearly inverse of the first's. Her headfins were less prominent amongst the swirls of her long dark hair, but it was harder to ignore the blindfold wrapped around her eyes. The last...well...Keith knew her. Ezor. A golden-skinned girl with pale coral-colored hair that accented her delicate headfins, her nearly black tale was patterned with sprinklings of yellow, green, and purple. One could hardly keep from staring at her. She'd once been part of the urchin band he'd lived with – before he'd found his way into Arus.

The last of them, who appeared to be the leader, had the lavender skin, the headfins, and the claws. Keith might've thought he was full Galra were it not for the white hair and the eerie multi-hued eyes. His black eel's tail seemed to be all of one color at first, but Keith noticed the flash of dark blue scales amongst the black. And while Keith's brain catalogued all of these details for later study, none of them were important in the current moment. The important detail was that this leading half-blood was the one holding the harpoon gun. _He_ was the one who'd shot Shiro!

"You have your orders. Keep to them," the leader ordered in a much more distinguished voice than Keith expected to hear from a raider. "The rest of you bring me that guppy with the nerve to call himself a prince."

" _Lance!_ " Shiro shouted, struggling fiercely as the raiding leader began to reel him in, still run through with the wicked-looking harpoon. Already, blood was trailing through the water.

"You'll take him over my dead body!" Keith snarled at the advancing raiders as he moved in to defend his prince. Over his shoulder, he snapped "Lance, you and Hunk need to get out of here. _Now!_ "

"And leave the two of you behind? Forget that!" Lance fired right back.

"Lance, I- I think we might just be a liability at this point," Hunk pointed out nervously. Keith caught sight of him trying to pull Lance away out of the corner of his eye.

"You want me to leave Keith to face five Galra alone? What about Shiro?" the fifteen-year-old prince demanded, pushing Keith's gaze back past their encroaching attackers to the other half-blood, who had nearly finished reeling Shiro in.

"What are you going to do?" Keith demanded sharply. "Throw rocks at them? You have no combat training, my prince. You need to _go! Now!_ " he snapped, attempting to move back to formalities to prove to Lance how serious he was. He'd lost sight of the other three half-bloods, but the Galra were almost upon them.

"If I have to throw rocks, then that's what I'm gonna do, dammit!" Lance shouted.

" _GO! NOW!_ " Keith shrieked, fangs baring as he plunged his dagger into the first Galra's throat.

Shiro was only partly aware of all this. The hooked tip of the harpoon had lodged in his ribs and he knew it wasn't coming out. Not without intensive surgery or some broken bones. With every wrenching attempt he made to break the line that held him, the pain of the metal in his side just burned even worse. He'd lost track of his dagger and it was starting to look like the only way he'd get out of this _was_ to break his ribs. When he heard Keith tear into the enemy, he suddenly found himself face to face with their leader, who fixed him with a patronizing sneer.

"What do we have here?" the half-blood mocked as he pulled Shiro in close, reaching up with his free hand to touch the long white stripe in Shiro's hair. "An empty vessel."

"Y- you...let them... _go!_ " Shiro snarled against the pain in his ribs, not wanting to ask how this creature knew what he was.

"Ah," the half-blood continued, still sneering condescendingly. "So noble. I suppose it's no wonder the witch chose you. Then I hope you know that as long as you live, their world is in danger."

"How- how do you-"

" _Know?_ I do not believe there is a man, woman, or child in the Galra camps who does _not_ know who you are...Takashi Shirogane. The mer queen and her lackies may have kept your secret, but _we_ know the truth of you, Shirogane. You are creator and destroyer, treasure and terror, redeemer and annihilator. Savior... _and executioner!_ " the halfblood finished with a flourish as he reached for the harpoon, twisting it deeper in.

Shiro screamed in agony as the barb penetrated deeper. He could feel things inside of him breaking and bursting. The taste of his own blood was coating his tongue in foul copper. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was aware they would only have minutes before sharks caught the scent.

" _Shiro!_ " he heard Lance cry out in terror.

 _Lance...Keith...Hunk...no..._

"Don't worry. You won't die. She won't _let_ you die. After all, if _you_ die, it means the witch has won," his attacker assured him, drifting down to suck a fresh bloom of blood from the water. As he licked his lips, he exalted, " _Ah_. The sweet taste of _power_. What I wouldn't give to simply _devour_ you...Shiro. That is what they call you, isn't it," the half-blood said, shivering as he looked back up at him. His uncanny eyes filled with a sudden and intense _hunger_ as he traced a single clawed finger across the slit that concealed Shiro.

The Guardsman didn't give himself time to react in disgust because he'd already seen what he needed to. While the half-blood was distracted, Shiro reached over his shoulder and seized the dagger he'd seen strapped to his back. Moving past the agony in his body, he severed the fishing line that tethered him to the half-Galra before making a clumsy swipe across his enemy's face.

The half-blood snarled in pain as he jerked back from Shiro, giving the Guardsman the opportunity to head back to his charges, trailing blood through the water.

Keith didn't see how Shiro was faring. He'd managed to take out two of the Galra and Lance and Hunk _had_ actually knocked one out with a rock. But when he'd tried to go for a fourth, another seized him from behind and he was suddenly facing down Ezor, with the Galra holding his arms immobile.

"Hey, Keith. Nice to see you again. Good to know you survived all this time," she said with a cheeky grin as she drew a spear on him, tracing the point over his heart. "It really is too bad, though. I did like you," she told him as she drew the spear back for a proper strike. But just as she was about to plunge it through his heart, the angry, pained snarl of her leader reached them.

"Ezor, no! I already told you! Keep to the plan."

His fellow half-blood's moment of distraction allowed Keith the opportunity to throw off his captor, reaching with the only weapon he still had to claw out the creature's eyes. The Galra's pain gave him enough time to dispatch it, but what exactly happened next, well...he would never really be sure he could say.

" _Lance!_ " he heard Shiro cry out in warning, though his voice was weak with pain.

Keith spun quickly in the water, but it was like everything around him was moving slower, like he was stuck at a separate rate from everything else and could do nothing but watch as events played out.

Lance looked up from his and Hunk's kill to see the last Galra bearing down on him. Keith could see the sudden fear in the young prince's eyes, but he was clearly too shocked to do anything. Keith tried to cry out, but he couldn't make his mouth work.

Then the Galra spear pierced flesh and it was all over.

Keith would never be able to say he had _seen_ Shiro throw himself in front of Lance. All he knew was that Shiro was suddenly there – with a spear embedded a little further down from the harpoon already lodged in his ribs, his eyes impossibly wide with shock and pain. For several moments, all Keith could hear was the sound of the acting captain raggedly drawing water into his gills. But then –

" _SHIRO!_ " Keith cried out in an anguished voice he barely recognized as his own, but the sound of his voice seemed to give the other mermyd enough presence of mind to press forward and slash his attacker through the heart. Lance reached out to catch their guardian as he drifted back into his outstretched arms, but the look of shock in his eyes said he was barely registering what was happening. Keith quickly moved in to help him, despite his own injuries.

It seemed they weren't done, though, as the half-blood was suddenly swimming toward them – and Lance was out in front of them all, just as Shiro had been.

"Lance, no! _What are you doing?_ " Keith hissed up at him, still trying to support Shiro.

"Stop!" Lance shouted, throwing his arms wide. The half-blood stopped short before him with a look of interest on his face. "I'm _not_ going to let you hurt them anymore!"

" _Let_ me?" their attacker repeated, quirking an eyebrow in amusement. "What is it you think you can do to _stop_ me?"

When Keith saw Lance's shoulders slump, he could just about picture the lost look in his eyes, but when the half-blood attempted to make a move past him, Lance shoved him away with a shout. When he flung his arms out this time, a violent swirl of water burst from them, surrounding Hunk, Keith, and Shiro.

"W- wha-" Hunk started, unable to finish the question as he reached out to touch the swirl, only to find that it was solid. They were enclosed in a barrier.

The half-blood laughed when he saw what the prince had done. Reaching out to lay a hand on the barrier, he came in uncomfortably close to Lance. Barely a hairsbreadth separated them.

"There it is. So you _do_ have the gift. I _knew_ it."

"W- what do you want with me?" Lance tried to demand, though it would've been plain to anyone with eyes that he was afraid.

"To _see_ you. To test your power. To know what sort of _fool_ thinks he can ignore the singing in his blood. You have more power than you know, little prince," their attacker said, reaching up his free hand to caress the side of Lance's face. Sneering, he ran his thumb along the prince's bottom lip.

" _Get away from him!_ " Keith snarled as he made a run at the barrier, only to find himself held back. There was no way through.

Lance squeezed his eyes shut as he turned his face away from their enemy. "Why would- that matter?" he asked, not looking back at the half-blood.

"Heh, you'll learn soon enough. I shall _teach_ you."

"Lance, if you don't let me out of here in _two seconds_ -" Keith started threatening, pounding against the barrier with his fists.

"Lance..." Shiro groaned from where he'd drifted to the seabed, barely conscious. The still water inside the barrier was already starting to affect him. It was also turning red with his blood.

"Who...who are you?" Lance finally made himself ask, looking up at the half-Galra.

Their attacker gave a quiet, hideous laugh as he leaned in closer, pressing his lips to Lance's ear. "I am the uncrowned prince. My name is Lotor Malain, and I will not have you forget it... _brother_ ," Lotor hissed in his ear before leaning down and pressing a kiss that was half bite into the hollow of his neck. When Lotor released him, Lance slumped against the barrier, nearly in shock. Then the half-blood called through the barrier as if Lance weren't even there. "Shirogane, I know I told you she wouldn't let you die, but that doesn't mean you can go around pushing your luck like this. A warrior of your caliber should not die for a pathetic princeling like this."

"You...monster," Shiro hissed before falling completely unconscious.

"Shiro!" Hunk started in worry, moving down to check his pulse while Keith kept trying to break Lance's barrier.

"Well, I certainly hope you find a way out of this. After all, I cannot have you die yet...and it won't be long at all before the sharks arrive," Lotor reminded them as he swam away. Once he was gone, Lance actually fell back through the barrier, drifting into Keith's arms.

"You _idiot!_ " Keith growled at him while cradling him none too gently in his arms. "Why would you _do_ that? He could've killed you!"

"Malain," Lance whispered, staring distantly through the barrier.

"What?"

"Didn't you hear? He said his name- was Malain...that he's my _brother_ ," Lance said, eyes briefly widening in shock.

"Not for nothing, you guys, but I think we're gonna have to worry about that later. Shiro's in really bad shape," Hunk reminded them, drawing their attention back to the downed captain, who was still bleeding steadily into the water despite the weapons imbedded in his body.

"We need to get him back to Arus," Keith said, grunting with effort as he snapped the spear haft in two, leaving just a small portion of it extending from their guardian's chest.

"And I can't drop this barrier," Lance said, already noticing a reef shark swimming into the area. More would follow. "This place'll be bristling with sharks in another few minutes."

"How long do you think you can maintain it?" Keith asked, glancing up at him in worry.

"Long enough...I hope," he said, gulping nervously when he saw a group of blue sharks swimming in.

"You're going to need to keep the water in here circulating," Hunk pointed out. "The oxygen in the water should last long enough, but that's not going to matter if we can't pull it in. We'll be unconscious before we even make it to the flats."

"Heh, gotta do everything around here," Lance tried to joke, turning his focus to moving their small bubble through the water, occasionally sparing a burst of power to circulate the rapidly stagnating water.

As they made their slow, steady way through the water, more and more sharks swam to the battle site. They'd all observed sharks at a distance, of course, but it was a little different to have two bull sharks swim hardly half a meter above your head and know it was your own blood they were tracking. Lance thought he'd managed to gain some distance on the feeding frenzy waiting to happen when he suddenly felt the barrier slip from his grasp. For the brief moment their only protection was free, the bloody water contained within it was allowed to bloom out into the open water, giving the predators a fresh scent.

Lance barely had time to draw the barrier back in before the growing mass of sharks was on them again, now with an idea of the source of the blood. The animals were swarming so thick around them now that Lance could hardly see through the water. Some were even beginning to chomp at the invisible barrier. There was one point where they all got an unimpeded view straight down the gullet of a massive tiger shark.

Even Lance, who usually had a bad joke on hand to ease the tension, couldn't bring himself to say anything at this point. If he lost focus, even for a moment, they would all be dead in seconds. Shiro might be dead already. When two hammerheads made particularly nasty rams against the shield, the prince felt tears gathering behind his eyes. How long could he keep this up?

Keith mostly kept his attention on Shiro, doing what he could to stem the flow of blood from his body. The water was getting redder and redder all the time and there was only so much Lance could do to keep the tainted liquid circulating while still maintaining the shield. Hunk was already fighting passing out. Keith didn't have much presence of mind to react one way or the other when Lance grabbed him by the hand. All he could manage was to look up at the prince, seeing the telltale redness that was the sign of tears. Fighting to pull in his next breath, he gripped his friend's hand tighter.

 _You can do this, Lance. I_ _ **know**_ _you can._

"Don't...worry about me," Hunk mumbled, drifting to rest against the bottom of the shield beside Shiro. "If I pass out, I can probably last another ten minutes."

"The- hell are _you_ passing out for?" Keith tried to demand. Something – _anything_ – to keep the other myd awake, though he was starting to feel the effects himself. "How many Galra did you kill today? Half of one?"

"Hey...I...jus' because...I'm not..."

With that, Hunk fell silent, eyes slipping shut.

"Hunk?" Keith called out. " _Hunk!_ "

It was no use. The larger myd had gone completely under. Lance tried to give the foul-tasting water another pulse, but he couldn't manage it.

"It's okay," Keith said softly, still squeezing his hand. "Don't worry about us. Just circulate for yourself if you need to. Do what you have to do. We'll be home soon."

He wasn't wrong. A few of the sharks had peeled away in search of easier prey and Lance could see at least enough to know that they were making their descent onto the flats. They just had to make it across to the city. The gate patrol would be able to discourage the sharks from their present course. If they could just get there...

Keith tried to keep his hold on Lance's hand, but it was getting harder with every drag of water through his gills. He was pulling in so little oxygen that black spots were beginning to tear across his field of vision. The taste of Shiro's blood was heavy on his tongue as he fought to stay conscious.

"Keith?" Lance called out hesitantly, then louder. " _Keith?_ Keith?"

"'m still here," he finally managed to mumble, listlessly turning his head to look up at the prince.

"Don't go," Lance pleaded with him desperately, gripping his hand to the point that it was almost painful. "Don't leave me here. Don't leave me here by myself."

"I'm not going anywhere," Keith returned as firmly as he could. Though he wasn't really able to return his grip anymore, he could at least respond with the gentle pressure of his finger pads. "I'm here. I'm right here."

They were so close now. Just a little further.

"Don't go. Don't go," Lance continued to sob.

"It's all right. I'm here. I'm right here. I'm right here," he kept repeating the words over and over and over again, like a mantra – like a prayer.

"Don't go."

"I'm right here."

He kept repeating until his vision went dark, until he couldn't draw breath. He kept saying the words right up until the moment he no longer could.

XxX

"Three broken ribs, partially punctured liver, punctured intestine, nicked spinal column, not to mention the near exsanguination and the beginnings of hypoxia," Gyrgan reported grimly. Honerva listened to her chief physician's report with a grim look of her own. "At this point, I would say it's sheer stubbornness keeping him with us. There's _no reason_ this boy should be alive right now."

She understood what he was telling her. Of course she did. Shiro's survival up to this point was a near miracle. He wasn't dead yet, but he could be any moment now, and as always, it seemed she owed the name Shirogane more than a death like this.

"I see," she said quietly, the image of her youngest son collapsing into her arms after being pulled from the flats haunting the space behind her eyes. "Leave us. I want you to clear this corner of the ward."

"Honerva-" the doctor started in a worried tone, "If you're thinking of-"

"I have no choice. After all, I- I _cannot_... _will not_ let him die," she said, swimming closer to the hammock her acting captain was lashed into.

"As you wish...my queen," Gyrgan acquiesced, sparing one more concerned look for Shiro before heading out of the isolation ward.

"Well, Takashi...it seems I owe you my child's life twice over now," she said, reaching forward to stroke the hated white streak in his hair. "What sort of queen would I be if I couldn't give at least a little of that back?"

With that, Honerva leaned down to press her forehead to Shiro's, cupping his face firmly between both hands as she reconnected the old links of power between them. They'd been designed as one way streams, but she'd managed to force them to work in reverse on the night they'd been created. She was going to attempt it again.

The queen felt a kind of _jolt_ within the astral essence of her power as she linked with the young merman. Almost immediately, she felt his life begin to flow into hers. It took several preciously needed seconds for her to force the flow of energy backward, attempting to return even a tiny portion of the life that had been stolen from him on her behalf. Shiro jerked several times, crying out in his sleep, but she managed to hold onto him.

"I know you don't believe you _deserve_ to be saved, Takashi, but I'm not letting go of you _that_ easily. They still need you. We _all_ still need you. You _can't_ leave us yet."

Honerva could feel how resistant the connection still was but, little by little, she forced her own power back against it, gradually siphoning healing energy back to the young merman. She couldn't heal him completely. That would take more time with the active connection than either of them could bear, but she could at least heal him enough to keep him from dying. That would have to suffice for now. And when she finally released the connection between them, she very nearly gave up her own hold on consciousness, drifting lightly to the floor, though she managed to keep one hand gently gripping the Guardsman's shoulder. Shiro was finally resting, breathing easily with a look of peace on his face.

"I can never- repay you- for everything you've done...but that doesn't mean I won't try. You just rest, Captain Shirogane. Get that strength back for the _next_ time you try to get yourself killed," she finished with a small, sorrowing laugh.

XxX

"KEITH!" Lance shouted as he jolted awake from his nightmares, finding himself tangled in an unfamiliar hammock. Lotor...Shiro...the sharks...the shield...Hunk... _Keith!_ What had happened?

"Lance?" Keith's worried voice drifted into the room from down a corridor. Within moments, the trainee was bursting into the ward, eyes wide with fear and hope. When Keith saw him attempting to struggle his way out of the hammock, he quickly swam to his side, laying a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Easy, Lance. Calm down. You're all right."

" _I'm_ all right?" he repeated incredulously. "Yeah, that wasn't really what I was worried about. What about you? What about Hunk? _Shiro?_ What _happened_ out there?"

"If you'll just calm down for half a moment, I'll tell you," Keith said, the relief in his expression immediately shifting to annoyance. "I don't know how much of it you remember, but they told me about it when I regained consciousness. The gate patrol spotted the frenzy when it descended to the flats. We were just about at the entrance when they acted. Apparently they were able to drive the sharks off just as your shield was going. It only took Hunk half an hour to wake up. It took me a little longer, but Shay got me patched up," he explained, showing off the patches that covered his arms and chest, preventing more blood from seeping into the water.

"And...Shiro? Is he all right?" Lance pressed, feeling his heart plummet when Keith's expression fell.

"He hasn't regained consciousness yet. Your mother...the queen...she did something. Nobody will tell me what. She says he'll be all right...but he hasn't woken up yet."

"Yet?" Lance started in confusion. "How- how long has it been? How long have _I_ been out?"

"Lance, it- it's been two days since it happened," Keith said, like he was trying to break it to him easily and didn't really know how.

"Two- two _days?_ " the prince repeated in shock. "I've been unconscious for _two days?_ "

"You just about _killed_ yourself getting us back here. Is it that much of a shock you needed more time to recover?"

"That isn't...it's not...forget it. It doesn't matter. Where's Shiro? I want to see him," Lance insisted, disentangling himself from the hammock while Keith tried to puzzle out his words.

"Just down the corridor. They have him in an isolation ward. There was...he lost a lot of blood," Keith mumbled, the expression on his face going disquiet as he thought back.

"Show me," Lance said, swimming out ahead of Keith, who followed indignantly behind him just a moment later.

"Hold on! You've been conscious for all of five minutes. You can't just go swimming off wherever you want. What if you pass out again?"

"No better place to do it than a med ward," Lance fired back, beginning to swim down the lefthand side of the corridor. "This way."

Keith rolled his eyes in exasperation, grabbing Lance by the wrist and pulling him the other way. " _This_ way, actually. What was that you were saying?"

"That I'm kind of in a hurry," Lance bit back. Much as Keith seemed to want to argue with him, Lance could tell he was also still worried about Shiro, so they made the rest of the swim in silence.

Isolation wards were one of the few types of sealed rooms in Arus. After a surgery, blood was much easier to filter from a sealed room than it was from a larger, open space. Lance was only marginally comforted by the fact that the ward Keith led him to wasn't actually in lockdown. When they entered, it was to find Honerva and Gyrgan observing while Shay performed a checkup on the ward's single occupant, who hung comatose in a hammock, drifting with the artificial current.

Shiro was pale, but he was at least breathing easily, gills fluttering with each pull of water. With the myriad patches covering his torso, none of his injuries were visible, but Lance had been there. He knew _exactly_ how bad they were.

"How is he?" he made himself ask after several minutes, drawing the attention of everyone present in the ward.

"Lance," his mother started, swimming toward him and gathering him in her arms.

"I'm all right, Mama. I'm fine," Lance told her, trying to shrug her off. "How's he?"

"Stable," Shay answered as she finished her examination. "I would say I don't know why he hasn't regained consciousness yet, but...well...it seems something of an understatement to say he's been through a lot."

"He'll be all right," their mother said firmly. "He's survived worse. Only...Lance, Hunk and Keith told me it wasn't just Galra that attacked you."

"It wasn't," Lance confirmed. "The...part-Galra who was leading them...he called himself Lotor. Lotor Malain."

"What?" his mother whispered in shock.

"Lotor Malain. He said- he was my brother," he told her, looking up at his mother with a kind of helplessness in his eyes. Was this _their_ fault? Had his family been the cause of Shiro's pain yet again?

"Impossible," the queen insisted, shaking her head. "I would certainly know if I'd given birth to any such child and your father has no other children."

"More likely this Lotor is a child of Zarkon's," Gyrgan bit out, eyes remaining fixed on Shiro. The physician was one of the few who dared to speak the former king's name. "His get by some Galra bitch. Having Zarkon's blood would certainly give any myd delusions of grandeur, but he has no right to the name Malain. This Lotor has no true royal blood. It's impossible."

"He's no brother to you, Lance. I'll promise you that," his mother reassured him. "To your older siblings, maybe, but not to you, Shay, or Rax."

"Right," Lance said with a small shake of his head. Maybe it made him feel a little better, but not by much. As the others quietly moved back to the work of tending Shiro, Lance slowly moved back to Keith's side. When he was close enough, it almost seemed like he would reach out for the trainee's hand again, but instead he whispered to him, "Keith...I want you to teach me how to fight."

"What?" Keith demanded, glaring at him in surprise out of the corner of his eye.

"You and Shiro...you were helpless out there...when you had to protect me and Hunk. I don't want to _ever_ be that helpless again, not when you need me," Lance insisted in a hiss, feeling something in his heart clench painfully when he looked to Shiro once again. "I'm a prince. I can't go on letting other people fight my battles for me. I'm just not going to do that anymore."

Keith sized him up for several moments, an expression Lance couldn't make sense of moving across his face. When he finally spoke again, it was with resolve.

"I've never thought of you that way, but much as I hate the idea of you _needing_ to fight, I can see the sense in learning."

"So you'll teach me, then?" Lance pressed.

"Yes," he conceded.

"Good," Lance said, unable to keep his gaze from sliding back to their comatose guardian yet again. That was when something occurred to him. "Has anybody told Allura what's been happening?"

"Huh?" Keith mumbled in confusion, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Allura. She and Shiro talk almost every day. If she's tried to reach him at all these last couple days and not gotten a response, she's going to start worrying."

"Oh, hell," Keith groaned, running a hand through his hair. "I didn't even think about that."

"There's kind of been a lot going on. She'll understand. I'll go get the mirror."

"Sure. You- wait! _Lance!_ " Keith started, but the prince had already slipped out of the ward, finning his way from the med center and back to the palace. Lance wasn't completely certain what to expect when he swam up the Guard tower and in through Shiro's window, but it definitely wasn't the sound of Allura's pleading voice.

"Shiro, are you there? Please talk to me. _Please!_ If I've done something to upset you, just tell me. _Shiro!_ I- I _need_ you," she near-sobbed. "Tell me you're there. Shiro..."

"Allura?" Lance called out in worry as he rushed to Shiro's trunk, hastily pushing the lid open.

"L- Lance?" the princess returned in confusion, clearly not having expected to show such vulnerability to one of the younger myds.

"It's me," he said as he pulled the mirror out.

"But...where- where's Shiro? I've been trying to contact him," she said, the look in her eyes nearing panic as she looked up at him.

"It's...Allura, we- we were attacked. On the way home from our last visit."

At this, Allura's eyes went wide in horror, her face blanching to the roots of her already white hair. "Oh, _gods._ Lance, where's Shiro? _Please_ tell me he's all right!" she demanded in desperation.

"Shiro...he took a spear for me," Lance answered as he squeezed his eyes shut, unable to make himself look at the expression that might be on the princess' face. "And he was shot with a harpoon gun."

"But...where would the Galra even _get_ something like that?"

"Shipwreck, maybe. Dealings with other humans. I don't know. I just know no descent mermyd would use a weapon like that on a fellow mer," he bit out.

"Lance...is...is he-"

"He's alive. My mother saved him. She says he'll recover, but he hasn't woken up yet."

"Oh, thank goodness," Allura whispered, relief blossoming over her face as a little color returned to it. For a moment, she just sat still with her eyes closed, but when she finally opened them again, it was with a desperate _need_ in them. "Can you take me to him?"

"Sure," Lance said with a nod, shifting the mirror to lie flat against his chest so she could see out as they swam, almost as if they were sharing vision again. For some reason, he found himself in not as much of a hurry to get back to the med center as he had been to get away from it.

When he arrived back in the isolation ward, Keith was the first to notice him, eyes widening in surprise and sudden pity as he entered the ward. Honerva and Gyrgan were next to notice him, with only a little visible pity in their eyes. When Shay saw the mirror she gave a quiet gasp.

"Allura."

The princess of Altea saw none of this, though. Her attention was only for Shiro, lying so devastatingly still in the hammock.

"Oh...Takashi...Shiro...dear Shiro," she whispered with quiet pain, the utter desolation in her voice tearing at something in each of their hearts. "I- I know why...but _why?_ Please...wake up. You woke up all those years ago when- when Matt was crying. Why won't you wake up now?" she asked, and even though he couldn't see her, Lance could hear how she was crying. But then, suddenly-

"Allura?" Shiro called out faintly, eyes still closed in sleep.

"Shiro?"

"Is he-"

"I don't think so," Gyrgan interrupted Shay's question with a pitying shake of his head. "Only dreaming."

"I'm here, Takashi. I'm _right here,_ " she soothed as best she could as Lance swam the mirror closer.

"'lura...oh...Allura," he called out again, fingers briefly twisting within the weavings of the hammock. "No...you cannot- be her. She is...far away. She is so far above me. She is a goddess in another world...a vision in starlight," he mumbled deliriously, eyes briefly fluttering open. " _Vi ma prinscia._ " Then he was gone again, pulled down into the coma.

To this, Allura said nothing, just gave a quiet, strangled gasp, stifling her tears. After a few minutes of this, she started up again with, "Lance?"

"Yes?"

"What was that...you were saying before? About Galra having contact with other humans?" she asked, clearly trying to distract herself from the crisis at hand.

"Well...you know about that, don't you?" he returned, shifting the mirror so that the princess faced him again. "Not all the seafaring land kingdoms are as friendly with us as Altea is. Some of them see us as animals."

"Yes, I- I'm aware. But why would those kingdoms give weapons to Galra if they think of them no better than they do of you?"

"They are only too happy to provide weaponry for this war...to watch us destroy one another," Honerva explained solemnly. "But my people would _never_ \- use such a weapon as this. A _harpoon_ gun – it's just so _distasteful._ "

"It's a bit more than _distasteful_ ," Keith snarled quietly. "It's an insult."

"Why?" Allura asked, looking over Lance's shoulder at the others in the ward.

"A harpoon is a fisherman's weapon...a _whaler's_. To use one on another mermyd, it...it says 'I think of you as less...less than intelligent, less than myd...as an _animal_...only good to be hunted and killed," Keith explained, the words hurled from his mouth like foul curses. "That that- _monster_ would do something like this to Shiro-"

"That's enough, Keith," the queen said in a commanding voice. "I understand that you are angry, but your anger will not change what happened. It will only distract you when you must be alert."

"Does my father know of this?" Allura asked the queen.

"Yes," Honerva replied, suddenly looking old and tired. "He intervenes where he can, but it's difficult to halt commerce when both parties profit, war or no."

"Allura?" Lance suddenly started in, something occurring to him.

"Hmm?"

"Before...when I came to get the mirror...you were trying to get in touch with Shiro. You said you needed him. What's wrong?"

"I...oh, gods, I just hate to put this on all of you _now_ , but...Matt's gone missing."

" _What?_ " Lance, Keith, and Shay all demanded fiercely with one voice.

"The night of our bonfire...he didn't come home. He stayed out alone to wait for the tide. He shouldn't have been long...but he wasn't in his bed the next morning. We've had no sign of him since then. Samuel and Colleen are frantic. Pidge has been running search grids over the beaches nonstop. I'd- been trying to get hold of Shiro for help in searching the shallows, but since...well...my father's about to formally ask Arus for help in searching...in case...in case he is somewhere we cannot reach him," the princess said sadly, her eyebrows knitting together in misery. None of them could bring themselves to actually _say_ it, but this was far from the first time the citizens of Arus had been asked for help in searching for...a body.

"Oh...this is awful," Shay bemoaned. "Poor Pidge. Of course we'll help."

"Matt's our friend. We'll do whatever it takes to find him," Keith promised.

XxX


	5. And Night is Near

(A/N) So we're some 50,000 words into a rated M fic...and I'm only just _now_ getting to the juicy bits? Somebody smack me. And here it is not even my main couple. Ah, well. We'll get there when we get there...and will surely get a _lot_ when we get there. *wicked grin* For now, I certainly hope you enjoy this new chapter. Fair warning, this is my first stab at writing mer sex, so...we'll just see how it goes.

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 5: And Night is Near..._

 _With time, weeks and months, the acting captain of the Guard was able to recover from the scuffle with the Galra prince. It seemed the young half-blood had come of age recently, as he began to appear on the field of battle more often, leading the former king's warriors to even greater victories. Even so, the queen would not permit her captain to take up the fight outside the city._

 _The young man who had gone missing was never found. Though the citizens searched the length and breadth of the waters surrounding the kingdom of Altea, no trace of him was ever found. As the saying went among the merfolk, the sea tolerates no monuments. Even the highest mountain peaks would some day be ground down to nothing by the relentless wash of the waves. If the boy had perished on the water and they had not found him immediately, there would be nothing left to find._

 _Though the young man had officially been given up as dead, his friends never truly gave up the hope they might find him someday. It was in her desperation to find him that his sister finally managed to create her first working glider, seeking some way to better search the surrounding islands. They were the wings she'd always longed for, and she was too consumed with worry for her brother to truly take joy in them._

 _The young Guard trainee, meanwhile, was as good as his word to train Arus' youngest prince in the ways of combat. He taught the prince all the weapons he was master of and how to handle himself in close quarter combat. He made sure the prince would be able to protect himself should the need ever arise again; and all the while, the two young mermyds were growing closer, each sparring session becoming more and more a dance of desire, each building upon the last until_ _ **something**_ _had to give or the city of Arus had to come collapsing down on all their heads._

XxX

" _Again,_ " Keith's voice hissed in Lance's ear as the two of them grappled. Lance hissed when he felt the prick of his friend's claws at his wrists, and for the life of him, he couldn't tell if it was a hiss of pain or pleasure. He knew he wasn't _supposed_ to enjoy it, but gods almighty, when those claws came out...

"I'll show you 'again'," Lance growled, the tone hardly matching the mischievous grin on his face as he gave a powerful snap of his body, twisting free of Keith's hold on him. Using the trainee's surprise against him, he easily flung Keith over his shoulder and across the training floor. In only the space of time it took for the prince to turn around, Keith had already reoriented himself, situated upright in the water. Offering Lance a smirk that displayed the glinting tips of his fangs, he began to circle the prince.

"You know, if I didn't know better, I'd say you enjoyed that a little too much."

"Would you say that?" Lance parried, gaze following Keith's movements. "Because I'm not sure you _do_ know better," he said, running his tongue over his bottom lip.

"Guess we're just going to have to test the theory," Keith teased, making a feint to come at him before continuing with his circle through the water.

Lance almost fell for it – almost. He nearly slipped from his central point to leave himself open to a fresh attack, but he held his position, keeping his eyes fixed on his opponent. "How do you plan to do that?"

"Oh, I've got ways. Ways and ways again."

Lance nearly gave a visible shudder at the sound of those words. Sometimes he really had to question if Keith was aware of just what it was he _did_ to him. Were they even still talking about sparring?

"Keep your eyes on me, Lance," Keith warned him.

 _No problem there._

But as it happened, that was exactly his undoing. The prince kept his gaze just a little too fixated on his opponent's eyes and not enough on the rest of his movements. When he began to note the familiar moves of another feint, he dismissed it as such – and was therefore unprepared when Keith bolted toward him, head connecting with his chest as the part-Galra delivered his full power into the slam.

Blinking in surprise, Lance suddenly found himself pinned to the floor of the small training arena, Keith's arm pressed harshly against his throat to hold him down. The flow of water through his gills was very nearly cut off with the harsh move.

"Still enjoying it?" Keith asked, still smirking down at him. All he had to do was hold Lance down for another few seconds.

"Nhng, maybe," Lance grunted around the obstruction against his throat. "But- maybe... _you'd_ like to be the one on the bottom for a change?" he suggested.

At this, Keith's face went bright red and Lance used his moment of distraction to his advantage, forcing his way up and flipping until their positions were reversed, Keith pinned beneath him.

"There we go," the prince teased, keeping as much of his body pinned against Keith's as he could while drawing his fins up over his shoulder to tickle lightly against his partner's blush-stained cheek. "I can think of a few _theories_ we can test out like this."

"L- Lance..." Keith voice drifted up from his throat, choked, nearly _pleading_. Almost immediately, the prince felt himself begin to stiffen beneath his slit. Unconsciously, he ground himself against Keith's body, not knowing what it was that kept him from drifting those last few centimeters down and connecting his lips with Keith's.

"Hey, don't look now, guys, but the prince and his netling are at it again," an unexpected voice drifted into the small arena. Lance winced as he looked up to see a group of five or so young mermen passing by – a group of palace brats whose parents had a little standing in court, who had nothing to lose by mocking the least of the queen's illegitimate children.

"Yeah, princie, you're in the wrong spot. Go find a net somewhere," another of them mocked. Lance was just about to open his mouth to fire back at them when he suddenly found himself shoved to the side, Keith darting out from under him to lay into the young myds. The first was on the receiving end of that vicious headbutt of Keith's. The next two found their heads knocked violently together while the fourth was pinned to a pillar.

" _Say that to my face, Rizell!_ " Keith snarled as he whaled on their tormentor. "I _promise_ you'll find out what happens!"

"Keith, don't!" Lance tried to protest. Shiro was usually lenient in scuffles like this, given the circumstances, but Lance's mother had agreed with him less and less in more recent cases, thinking that Keith needed more self control. He could ill-afford another disciplinary measure so close to his Ascension, and Lance certainly didn't want to be the cause of it. After all, he _did_ have a reputation and it wasn't completely undeserved.

Keith looked up at the sound of his voice and the rest of the young myds used the opportunity to gang up on him, grabbing him and pinning him against the same column, immediately laying into him.

"How many times are we expected to do nothing when a Galra attacks us in our own city?" one of them snarled.

" _Attacks_ you?" Lance started indignantly. " _You_ started this. What did you expect him to do? Leave him alone!"

"No! We're done taking lip from this Galra slime! This ends here."

"Heh, what are you going to do? _Kill_ me?" Keith demanded, chuckling self-deprecatingly before one of them punched him hard across the face.

"If we have to."

Keith laughed outright at this, mocking the petty gaggle of mere boys. "You? You who've never even cut your teeth on a proper Galra warrior? Suddenly you think you're going to kill a minnow like me? _Go ahead!_ " he snarled, falling silent as he took the beating they doled out. It wasn't until Lance heard the final string of words he mumbled out that he _really_ started to get angry.

"No one would miss me."

 _What?_

That was the last straw for Lance. He barreled into the gang of myds like a seal into a school of fish. He was just as nasty as Keith had been not that long ago, maybe even _more_ so. He dislodged the wicked creatures from around his friend, sending them packing with several warning snarls.

"I promise you all the queen's going to hear about this!" he shouted after them. He didn't care so much when they went after him, but when they went after Keith, _that_ was when he got angry. And _now_ he was angry; not just at the other mermyds, but at Keith, too. For several minutes, all he could do was hover there fuming, not turning to look at his friend.

"Thanks?" Keith offered when the silence had seemed to stretch for too long.

" _Don't_ thank me," Lance snapped at him. "Why would you say something like that?"

"Like _what?_ "

"That no one would miss you?" he growled as he finally turned to face Keith. "You didn't think maybe _I_ might miss you? Or am I just your prince and nothing else?"

At this, Keith looked lost, like he _knew_ what he wanted to say, but if he said it...

"I...Lance, I...I didn't...that's not-"

The prince gave a pained laugh at the trainee's fumbled explanations. "I guess you still don't get it, even after all these years. You honestly don't know it would _destroy me_ if you weren't here anymore?" Lance demanded, swimming back and forth through the water in front of Keith.

"Lance..."

"Oh, sweet gods! I just- I can't do this anymore!" Lance declared for all the ocean to hear before seizing Keith's shoulders and planting his lips firmly upon his. With his eyes closed, he couldn't see the way Keith's burst open. All he was really aware of just then was the smooth, warm feel of the other myd's lips against his. There was a mild coppery tang from where he'd bitten his tongue during the skirmish, but other than that, the taste of him was just as rich and full as Lance had always imagined it would be. But when his own self-doubt suddenly overtook him, he hurriedly pulled back from his friend, not noticing the way the part-Galra had begun to cling to him.

"Sorry...I'm sorry," Lance started in a stilted voice, pulling even further back, knowing he was going to bolt at any moment. "I just- wanted to do that once in my life...just once. You don't- have to do anything with it. I just...I'll go now," he mumbled as he started to swim off.

" _Wait!_ " Keith cried out in panic, hand wrapping around Lance's wrist before he could get too far. When Lance slowly turned to look back at him, he found the part-Galra staring down at the ground, breathing heavily, as if he'd just swum for leagues.

"Keith?"

"Who said...you'd only get to do it once?" Keith asked as he finally looked up at him, eyes red with tears as a relieved smile lit his face.

Feeling his own throat choke up with tears of relief, an answering smile worked its way across Lance's face. Wasting no more words, he closed the distance between them and once again pressed his lips to Keith's, reveling in the feel of the embrace he'd dreamed of for so long. When the pair finally separated for a few needed gulps of water, they didn't pull very far from each other. They simply remained like that, cradled in each other's arms with their foreheads pressed together.

"Gods, you don't know how long I've wanted to do that," Lance whispered against the older myd's lips.

"Oh, I- I think I might have an idea," Keith returned with a breathy sigh, going in for another kiss while reveling in the way the prince pressed him up against the column he'd not long ago been forced against. Though the action was the same, the world had changed completely in a matter of moments. Both young myds just sighed as they continued to kiss.

Really, they might've done better to seek out a hammock to tangle in, but they'd both come to a point where they were long past caring what anyone else might see.

XxX

"Is it just me, or is this crowd much larger than it was for Shiro's Changing of the Guard?"

Lance had to resist the urge to huff in amusement at Allura's question. The situation was funny, certainly, but also grating in its own way.

 _It's not you,_ he returned telepathically, having advanced his far sight abilities to the point where he could communicate with the sharers without spoken words. Allura and Pidge were currently up in the cave while more than half the city of Arus was crammed into the royal audience chamber to witness the Ascension of the only part-Galra trainee the Guard had ever had. _A lot of people didn't believe Keith would make it this far. They're here to see if both he and the Guard will actually go through with this._

"That's so disgusting," Allura said softly, not needing to feel the anger in Lance's heart to understand how horrible such a thing must be for Keith.

Apart from the larger crowd, the layout was much the same as it had been for Shiro's Changing of the Guard. Lance's father was absent, out in the fields commanding the royal army, and as Thace was also currently out on the front lines with his own contingent of Guardsmen, in his place to conduct the ceremony was Shiro himself, expression stern, but eyes proud as they all watched Keith swim into the chamber, escorted by Antok.

"Why does Keith only have one escort? As I recall, Shiro had two," Lance heard Allura's voice through the link once again. When his clearly nervous lover caught his eye, Lance offered him a reassuring smile, all while answering Allura's questions mentally through his mother's opening words.

 _It's because Antok's the most recently anointed Guardsman above Keith. That's how it works. The escort's always the next highest in rank. Olia and Regris underwent the Changing at the same time, so they both acted as escort when Shiro joined up._

"Ah. And Shiro...slept with both of them?" she continued to press, voice more than a little hesitant.

Lance chuckled inwardly at that. _Right. I guess he's never talked about it, but that's how the Changing of the Guard works. How it's always worked. Something about becoming one with the Guard, in every way possible. Keith's going to- sleep with Antok...when this is over._

"And that doesn't bother you?" Pidge nudged.

 _Not- so much in the way you're thinking,_ he started to explain. _I get that it's a ceremony. It has to be done. I guess I'm just...sorry I'll be missing out,_ he finished, grinning wickedly as he imagined Pidge rolling her eyes.

"And so, declare yourself, Arisen One. Who is it who submits themselves to join as one with the Guard?" Honerva called out into the chamber.

"It is I, Keith Okorane, son of Air and Darkness, child born of his people," Keith called back formally, and at the sound of the full name, a hushed murmur spread throughout the audience chamber.

"What? What is it?" Pidge asked.

"That name- does seem a bit different than I've heard before," Allura started uncertainly.

 _It's probably the reason a lot of them came,_ Lance snipped, bitter on Keith's behalf. _To find out what he'd decide on. Okorane is a typical name choice for orphans. It just means 'child of the water'. Son of Air and Darkness is a nicer way of saying 'I have no idea who my parents are'._

"How's that?" Allura asked him.

 _Son of Air is the unknown factor. It means he doesn't know who his mother is. No mermaid's been known to survive giving birth to a part-Galra, so she's most likely dead. Son of Darkness, well...that's the Galra father._

"And 'child born of his people'? I've never understood that third part of a mermyd's name," Pidge said.

 _We receive those when we turn thirteen. Usually it's given by one of the court sorcerers. They're based on events in our lives, or wishes our parents have, sometimes even on visions, things the sorcerers see for us. Keith didn't want to consult any of them, though. He was afraid to know what they would've said, so he chose one for himself. Child born of his people,_ the prince explained.

"Ah," was the only response the two girls gave before they all settled back into watching the ceremony. Honerva had already pulled back to allow Shiro forward and the acting captain had passed his ceremonial spear to Antok so he was free to lay a hand on Keith's shoulder and on his forehead.

"Keith Okorane," Shiro began in a firm voice, "I have trained you with my own hands and given you what knowledge it lies with me to give. I declare you fit to serve among our most loyal warriors. So I ask you, before your peers, before your ancestors, and before your queen, do you believe yourself worthy to join our ranks?"

For a moment, Keith looked hesitant, like he might start to talk down on himself again. But he ultimately met Shiro's gaze and answered with his own firmness of voice, "Yes. I have given the best of myself in order to become worthy and I declare, without reservation, that I will give everything I am to the service of my queen and her blood."

"If that is so, permit me one question. What is it that is dearest to your heart, Keith Okorane? What is it that gives form to your life?" Shiro asked him, and it was at this point that Lance received a very specific feeling of deja vu, because this was also the point where'd he cut Keith's view off during Shiro's ceremony, knowing he wasn't allowed to see it. Even so, he did almost the exact same thing as his mentor before him had done – looked at all of them, each in turn, his gaze lingering on Lance the longest. The prince nearly found himself blushing before Keith finally turned back to Shiro.

"Family," Keith answered solemnly. "The people I love."

"I believe you," Shiro said with a warm smile. "Have you brought the tokens you were bid to lay before this gathering?"

"I have," Keith returned.

"Then present them."

Lance had to stop himself from gasping when he saw the items Keith produced from his belt pouch – a strand of braided red seaweed, a necklace of braided moss, and strung on the necklace, a simple lime-encrusted shell with a vibrant mother-of-pearl interior. He recognized them all. They were the gifts the group had given to Keith on his eighth birthday – his first birthday party ever. Simple little things plucked from the ocean...and they were the things that mattered most to the young Guardsman – small tokens that proved how his friends loved him. Lance had to shake his head to make sure he didn't start crying.

The prince saw a similar near-tears expression on Shiro's face when he rejoined the ceremony, just in time to hear the acting captain's next words.

"You say you will give all that you are to the service of Queen Honerva, so I ask you one last time, these things that define you...would you give even _them_ up in service to our queen? As a member of the Guard, will you give up the things that matter most to you?" Shiro asked him.

Keith actually looked shocked by the question, as if he honestly thought he'd come this far only to fail now, or perhaps wondering how Shiro could have possibly vowed to just throw away everything he loved. But as he hung there, drifting in the water and considering the question, he began to understand what it was he was really being asked. So he squared his shoulders and looked Shiro in the eye.

"No," he answered firmly, and once again the hall rustled with suspicious whispers. Was this the moment they'd all secretly wished for? The moment of the enemy's betrayal? Seething at the crowd, Lance almost didn't see the way Keith's gaze shifted back to him. "I can give no such answer, my captain, because what I love the most _is_ the blood of our queen. It would seem...contradictory to me...to offer up what I mean to protect. But more than this, giving up what matters most to me would surely kill me. I would just as soon offer up my own life, such as it is...but that is the vow I make to my brethren – the promise of one life for another."

Lance wasn't sure, but he thought he saw redness beginning in Shiro's eyes. He could barely see for the tears forming behind his own eyes. He might've rushed forward to seize Keith in his arms then and there were it not for the closing words of the ceremony.

"Then I, Takashi Shirogane, son of Ulaz and Luxia Shirogane, child born of faith, embrace you as comrade and brother," Shiro said as he pulled Keith into a tight hug, "and declare that you, Keith Okorane, son of Air and Darkness, child born of his people, are now and forevermore a Guardsman of the Crown of Arus."

"And I, Honerva Malain, daughter of Benir and Alness Malain, child born of starlight, confirm the declaration. Long may you defend the seed of Arus," the queen finished formally before pulling Keith away from Shiro to bestow a hug of her own.

Lance hardly waited until his mother had finished speaking before swimming out to sweep his lover into his arms, keeping himself contained enough to press a kiss only to Keith's forehead.

"Hold onto that until later," he whispered to the newly-appointed Guardsman. "Once those _ceremonial_ duties of yours are done, you're all _mine._ "

As Keith pulled back, cheeks burning a shade of red fierce enough to match the coloring in his tail, Pidge was suddenly going off in Lance's ear with, " _Gods,_ I hope you give us a chance to break connection before you get into all that."

"No promises," Lance teased, and whether it was from excitement or nervousness at the prospect of what the prince _had_ promised, Keith only allowed himself two wine sacs throughout the entire celebration. Throughout it all, Shiro looked on with an approving smile.

XxX

Keith didn't know that it was correct to say that he woke up after his time with Antok. That would imply that he'd been asleep. This was more like coming out of a meditative state. He found himself and the other Guard tangled up in his hammock with the taste of sex heavy in the water. His body felt lethargic and sated, but his heart was a little more on edge. Lance had assured him he didn't mind any of this, but Keith still found himself nervous now that it was over. Normally, he would've been able to disentangle himself from a hammock without disturbing any other occupants, but in this case he couldn't manage it. Antok stirred as slipped from the hammock.

"That bad at it, was I?" the older myd asked sleepily.

"N- no," Keith insisted with a mild blush, suddenly feeling rude as he glanced back over his shoulder. "It's just...someone's waiting for me."

Antok gave a small laugh as he rolled over in the hammock. "Only teasing, rookie. I know. I know. But I _am_ stealing your hammock for the night. And you should tell the prince he owes the first years the first round of drinks next time," he finished with a yawn.

"Right," Keith said with a relieved sigh before slipping out his window and making his way down the Guard tower.

He had travelled the city at night only a handful of times before and it wasn't all that different tonight, the typical quiet and dimness of a city at rest. What was different tonight was _him._ _He_ was a new person – a Guardsman. Of course, he didn't know if that rank would change anything about the way people felt about him, but it didn't mean that he hadn't attained something he'd struggled for so long to achieve. And indeed, he saw that pride in Lance's eyes as he swam up to the prince awaiting him on the edge of the kelp forest.

"Hey, soldier," Lance called out when he was close enough, offering him a sultry smile. "Out looking for a good time?"

"Maybe," Keith returned as he swam to him, taking him by the hands and whirling him through the water. Keith laughed, but Lance continued to offer up that 'come hither' look. "What did you have in mind?"

Lance wasted no words. He pulled Keith to him in a deep, near-bruising kiss, which Keith all but melted into, boneless and breathless. Slipping a hand up to his hair, Lance ran a single finger along the delicate edge of one of his headfins, causing the new Guardsman to shiver with pleasure. With just a few more strokes, Keith was moaning quietly into the prince's mouth. After a few more kisses, Lance trailed his lips down onto Keith's neck, tracing light, teasing kisses along the sensitive layers of his gills.

"So is this...what you had in mind?" he barely managed to make himself ask when he felt a single hand trail down his back, past his belt and down to the scales on his tail. The cool waters of Arus suddenly felt all too warm, like the water near a vent. "A little adventure in the forest?"

"Oh, no, my good sir," Lance half sang as he pulled away from him, leaving him with just enough of an appetite to follow into the kelp without hesitation. His gaze remained fixed on the younger myd's inviting expression as he moved backward through the water. "The kelp forest is for myds with less imagination. You and I are going _out._ "

At this, Keith stopped short. "You- you mean..."

"That's exactly what I mean. You coming?" Lance teased, writhing his body sinuously among the kelp strands in such a way as to leave the new Guardsman nearly choking on his next pull of water. Keith was past his hesitation in seconds, following after the prince without question.

Before tonight, there was no way Lance would have been allowed outside the city without an escort, but things were different now. Keith was a fully fledged member of the Guard, and lover or no, he was fully qualified to escort Arus' youngest prince anywhere he might want to go. The gate patrol allowed them to pass into the open waters with nothing more than a warning and a few dolphin whistles.

"Hope you can still swim straight in the morning, Okorane!"

"Don't be at it all night either, lover boy. You've still got to go on duty tomorrow."

"Oh, I think the prince could keep him up for _several_ nights."

Normally, Keith would've been embarrassed by all the attention, but now he was too fixated on Lance to care about much else. He had an idea of where they were going, but he let the prince keep the lead, dancing through the water just enough to keep Keith's appetite whetted. Besotted as they were with each other, they still kept as much to cover as they could to avoid the predators and the Galra. By the time they'd reached the coral garden that surrounded their destination, they were giggling quietly and trading little kisses, almost not seeing the bioluminescent beauty of the coral feeding at night. After a much deeper kiss, Lance pressed his lips to Keith's ear and whispered, "Come find me."

Then he disappeared in a swirl of bubbles and Keith was left staring at the magnificent arrays of coral in bewildered amazement. He'd seen coral gardens before, of course, but that was back in the old days – when his only eye had been for survival, never for beauty. But now, seeing the neon swirl of blues and pinks and greens all swaying together in the midnight current, he found himself caught up in the spectacular allure of it all. And it was made all the more breathtaking by the knowledge that, hiding somewhere among the coral, was the greatest beauty on land or sea, quietly awaiting him.

"Come on," Keith started to call out as he darted among the coral formations, straining to see past their color in order to find Lance. "Lance, come out. Some of us have things to do in the morning."

"Oh?" Lance's voice came to him from all around, magnified by the acoustics of the garden. "Was this _not_ a night worth waiting for?"

Keith snickered at this, beginning to swim about the perimeter in search of a spot his lover might be projecting from. "You know it was. Feel up to coming out so we can actually enjoy it together?"

"You're lacking in imagination, my lover, if you think this isn't enjoyable," Lance fired back teasingly. "I could do this all night."

"I bet you could," Keith returned, smirking when he spotted what he was sure was Lance's tail flitting among a few bunches of blue coral. "But some of us are getting impatient."

Grabbing for the flicker of movement he could've sworn was Lance, Keith found himself clutching a few strands of seaweed. Then he found himself tackled from behind, sent tumbling onto the sand below with Lance on top of him, pressing him down into the soft surface with a lingering kiss.

A contented sigh passed from his mouth in a rush of bubbles, but that contentment was also painted with a streak of want – of _desire._ Keith bucked up against Lance in excitement when the prince traced a hand down his stomach, then down onto his tail, fingers trailing deliberate paths along his closed slit.

"Oh...Lance...oh, _gods_ ," Keith groaned in pleasure, feeling himself beginning to respond eagerly to the prince's touch.

"I want to show you something," Lance whispered conspiratorially in his ear, nipping playfully at the earlobe before pulling away from him, allowing the young Guardsman a perfect view of his undulating body as he swam over to one of the many cave entrances concealed within the coral garden. It didn't take much for Keith to follow after that exquisite view.

At first, Keith thought Lance was just leading him into an ordinary cave, perhaps for a little more privacy for what he planned to do next. He still hadn't quite figured it out when he followed Lance into a larger circular chamber much further within the cave's network. The cave floor was covered with a soft layer of silt and sand, no doubt perfect for what they had in mind, but Lance wasn't occupied with sand just then. His gaze was fixed upon the cave's ceiling, and when he noticed Keith had caught up, he nodded upward.

"Look."

When Lance nodded, Keith suddenly noticed the amazing interplay of light across his face. Then he followed the light up to its source, immediately catching sight of the beauty Lance had been enthralled to.

The cave's ceiling was composed of a type of stone Keith had never seen before. The smooth black surface was scattered with tiny flecks of light, giving a breathtaking glow to what would have otherwise been complete darkness. Pale blue and white light moved across every surface in the cave, interspersed with the occasional flicker of green, yellow, and red. And to see Lance's face shining beneath that immense beauty was undoubtedly the loveliest thing Keith had ever beheld.

"The Starlight Caves," the prince said in a hushed voice, though Keith _had_ managed to work that much out on his own. "I've been here before, but...never _with_ someone. I- wanted you to be the one...to see it with me," he said, coming to a stuttering halt, suddenly seeming nervous. Clasping his hands together, he looked down at the sand with the faintest tinge of a blush on his bronzed cheeks. Seeing just how nervous he was, Keith felt his own nervousness melt away. Moving forward, he reached for one of Lance's hands, drawing it up to his lips and pressing a kiss to the knuckles.

"It's the most beautiful sight I've ever seen," he said softly, keeping his body lowered before his lover and prince. " _Vi ma prinsci...ma olore,_ " he declared, voice laced with every strand of devotion he'd ever felt for this mermyd.

At this vow, Lance's face broke into a teary smile. Then he lowered himself to Keith's level to press their mouths greedily together.

" _Ma olore...ma olore..._ " he exalted between kisses.

 _My love...my love..._

Tonight was different. He had known that from the moment he'd seen Lance smile at him from the edge of the kelp forest. He'd fooled around with other trainees in the dorms and Antok had been very good to him before, gentle and understanding, but Keith could feel just how different this was as Lance lowered them both to the soft sand, removing their belts as he went. His first kisses had been rough, ungainly things, bitten out in the darkness of the trainee dorms. Antok had kissed him like he was inexperienced, like he wanted to show him something new. But Lance...Lance kissed him like he was something precious...something sacred...like some goddess' devotee offering prayers at a shrine. Keith didn't know that he'd ever felt so loved, so cherished, as he did in this moment, with the youngest prince of Arus pressing tender kisses to his face and neck.

"I love you...I love you..." he cried out softly each time Lance's lips touched his skin. Whenever he could, he leaned down to press a kiss to the top of the other myd's head, loving the silken feeling of his soft hair against his lips.

As Lance began to trail his kisses further down, he started to rub more insistently at Keith's slit. It was a difficult balance to strike, opening him up without making him fully hard. Antok had had a time of it earlier, but now that it had already been done once, Keith imagined it would be easier. He was already starting to feel slickness dribble from his body, slowly beginning to part the lips of his slit.

"How does it feel?" Lance asked him before he started to suck a small bruise into the juncture of Keith's shoulder. For a few moments, all Keith could manage to do was groan, body rolling eagerly beneath Lance's as the prince worked at him.

"Good... _so_ good," he groaned. With each press of Lance's body against his, he could feel his lover's eagerness, the intensity of their bodies moving so closely together. Reaching down to feel for Lance's slit, he got a chance to feel the slick spilling from him before the lips bulged and parted, allowing his cock to slip from his body, fully hard. Keith gave several keening cries at the feel of Lance pressed so intimately against him.

Then Lance lowered his head to Keith's chest, drawing a single reddening nipple into his mouth. With just a few intense swirls of his tongue over the hardening surface, Keith found himself crying out as his slit split open, spilling more fluid into the water. Lance didn't hesitate before pushing himself fully into Keith's body, knowing they only had a few seconds before his own cock would stiffen.

The new Guardsman took several moments to just breathe while the prince held him close, allowing him to adjust to the feel of him. Slowly curling his tail around Lance's, he rested his head against the younger myd's shoulder, taking in pull after pull of water, just being, just _feeling,_ impressing on his memory every tiny detail of the feel of Lance inside his body. He could feel the thick fullness of him inside, tying them together. He could feel the heat and the slickness of it, filling a place in him that had once been empty. He could feel his own body tightening around Lance, _needing_ to keep them joined. Sighing in pleasure, he leaned even further into Lance, holding as tightly to him as he could as he lifted his head to kiss the juncture of the prince's neck and jaw.

"How are you holding up?" Lance asked him, hips giving a few involuntary twitches as they drifted through the water together, holding tightly to each other.

"'m fine. Feels...so good," he moaned quietly, his own hips giving a few uncontrolled rolls of their own.

"I can- feel you," Lance panted out, lowering his head to press another round of kisses to Keith's chest. "Feel you- so tight around me. Can you- feel me?"

"Feel you- _ma olore_ ," he whimpered in a voice he didn't completely recognize as his own, the pleasure already beginning to mount between them. He wasn't going to last very long at this rate. "Feel you _inside._ "

"I love you, Keith," Lance crooned easily as they began to move together through the water, making subtle but powerful thrusts against each others' bodies, each drawing the other closer and closer to climax.

"Lance...gods- _Lance_ ," was all he could manage to get out. "I- I'm... _oh, gods!_ "

Keith was the first to reach climax, giving a tiny, wordless scream as the orgasm ripped through him, leaving him limp and gasping in Lance's arms as the taste of his own release filled the water. Unable to do anything but hang there as the ecstasy rushed through him, he cried out to the stars – both the ones twinkling just above Lance's head and the ones bursting behind his eyes.

It took Lance a few more minutes to reach his own climax, sharply biting out Keith's name as he released inside of him. Keith gave one last weak cry upon feeling the prince's seed burst inside his body.

Neither could really say how long they drifted like that in the aftershocks of their bliss, still joined together and floating in what felt like an infinite sea of both stars and water. Lance ended up being the first to stir, grinning languidly as he pulled Keith into a kiss.

"So, everything you'd ever dreamed, lover mine?"

Keith chuckled quietly into the kiss, smirking up at Lance as he curled his eel tail up and over the prince's shoulder, holding him as close as he possibly could. " _You're_ awfully confident, aren't you."

Something shifted in the prince's expression at this. He was still smiling, but there was something Keith couldn't identify in his eyes. "I didn't know- you still had those things we gave you for your birthday...that year."

"Well...of course," Keith said, feeling a mild blush stain his cheeks as he glanced down at the place where their bodies still joined. "Those were the first gifts anyone had ever given me. I'm keeping them with me until the sea takes them back. Really, I- I think the only one that might outlast me...is the shell you gave me."

"Why don't you wear them, then?" Lance pressed with that same smile. "Allura and Shay would absolutely _love_ that. _I_ love it."

"I couldn't exactly wear them all openly. I was worried you might think I was taking things too seriously," he found himself mumbling, not really wanting to explain to Lance that he'd always been worried about what the prince would think if he wore that shell of his openly.

"You shouldn't worry. You won't have to worry ever again." Lance reassured him as he slowly extricated himself from their drifting embrace, moving to retrieve Keith's belt from where it had fallen. Reaching into one of the pouches, he withdrew Keith's three treasures. Then he braided Allura's necklace and Shay's cord together into a single line with his seashell dangling from the end of it. He presented the new decoration to Keith, braiding it into his hair with a smile. "It doesn't matter what anyone else says. You are one of us. You always will be."

For several moments, all Keith could manage to do was drift there, staring at Lance. He tried to keep back the tears he felt burning behind his eyes, but ultimately, he could do nothing against them. He gave a loud sob as he rushed the prince, throwing his arms around him and pressing kiss after kiss to his face.

"Damn you, Lance! I promised myself I wasn't going to cry today!"

"Heh, I love you, too, Keith," Lance returned, pulling him into a more serious kiss. Even then, Keith couldn't stop himself from smiling and crying into that kiss. It wasn't enough – to say 'I love you'. It wasn't enough to contain everything he felt for Lance, for the home he'd found with him and the others. He would have to say it at least once for every day he'd known Lance and not said it, and even more for all the days of their lives that had come before they'd met. He would need to say it every day until the ocean took back their bodies.

"I love you."

XxX

 _Though life did continue on around them, and the group of friends tried their best to continue on with it, there were still some things that simply could not be released by the passage of time. The young fey-blooded girl still clung to the belief that her older brother was alive somewhere, and when she'd exhausted all of her possible resources and leads on land and sea, she was forced to turn her attention to yet one more avenue. The fairy folk._

 _Every fifty years or so, the Time of Accords came about_ – _a time of council and accounting, when the kingdoms of men and mer and all manner of creature in between came together to meet with the much longer-lived children of the aether to account for the state of their world. It was not the place of the fairy folk to intervene in the affairs of the mortal plane, merely to provide a point of view of longer expanse, to provide the wisdom the shorter lives of mortals could barely aspire to._

 _In her own shrewd aspirations to wisdom, the young part-fey came to the conclusion that if anyone in the world might be able to discern her brother's whereabouts, it would be the fairy folk_ – _their own sires. As it so happened, she was lucky enough that the Time of Accords was to occur during her lifetime, so when the time came, she petitioned for the right to join the delegation sailing for the Fair Isle. The king was hesitant, given how tactless he knew this very intelligent girl could sometimes be, but if a confirmation of her brother's death from the fairies themselves was what it took to help her move on, he was at least willing to facilitate that. So the girl was allowed to sail with her father, the king's advisor, and the princess on the morning tide._

XxX

For a place called the Fair Isle, Pidge found herself thinking there wasn't much to see when they reached the island's single port. It looked to be a typical island in the middle of the ocean, long stretches of beach, mangrove tangles gradually transforming into the more land-based forests, a small clutch of curious birds and animals observing their arrival. The only building this "port" seemed to consist of was a low structure that very much resembled the Betwixt, so Pidge imagined it served a similar purpose.

"Afraid I'm not seeing what the big deal is," she said skeptically as the group of emissaries disembarked from their ship.

"And have you seen so much of the world, little wing, that you think you can see everything there is to see here without taking a second look?" her father asked her.

"Well...no," she acknowledged with an annoyed huff. "I just don't see why there needs to be all this mumbo jumbo. Can't people just be straightforward?" she asked, gaze shifting between the building and the rest of the island once again.

" _People_ could, yes, but the fairy folk are not people. They are the fey, and they are your blood. If you want to learn something from them, I'd advise keeping your mouth closed and your ears open."

"You _know_ what I want to learn," she said without actually naming it. Her belief about Matt was a point of contention between her and her parents, and the only way they'd been able to let each other live in peace was by not talking about it openly.

"I do," her father said stiffly. "And the only way you'll be permitted to speak to the queen is by displaying a few manners, so had best be careful of any comments over what this isle is or isn't named."

"Don't worry, Pidge. I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for here," Allura said, trying to keep the atmosphere cheery as the small delegation made its way along the dock toward the building.

"Right. I will," she said firmly, finally allowing her gaze to fix on the building up ahead, not letting herself worry about the island anymore. "Do we know if the Arus delegation is here yet?"

"They should've arrived just last night," Coran responded.

"Are we the last ones in?"

"Afraid not. Look what's just coming over the horizon," the councilor pointed out, directing their gazes back out to sea. A low, squat sailing ship was cutting its way across the waves.

"A Drowl ship," Allura said with disdain. The Drowl were one of the few peoples who engaged in trade with the Galra.

"Had best to head in before they come into port," Samuel Holt said with a disapproving sniff. "I can't imagine anyone wants to be here when they make landfall."

That, at least, they could all agree on, so they headed inside without further incident, although incident began again upon their entrance, as Pidge was immediately rushed by Hunk and Lance.

"Pidge!" Hunk shouted as he seized her in a hug.

"You made it!" Lance cheered, joining in on the hug.

"Hey, guys," Pidge managed to greet through the tangle of mer limbs surrounding her. "Who's here?"

"Acxa, Florona, Shiro, and Olia," Hunk ticked off. "Keith wanted to come along, but he's undergoing training for some new kind of dagger fighting style. Shiro wanted him to get it perfect."

"Y'know, I really wish I could ask these fairies how this aether stuff works," Pidge commented as she watched her two mer friends swim through whatever substance it was that filled the building. "I'd swear I was breathing air right now."

"Perhaps you ought to," her father said. "Knowledge of your aetheric roots might do you some good, and who's to say whether you'll have another chance to ask them directly."

"Nice thought, but no. I came here for one thing and one thing only."

"Oh? What thing is that?"

The group looked up to see a tall fey girl approaching down one of the corridors. She didn't so much seem to walk as she did to just float lightly upon the floor. Her skin was a pale blue color Pidge had heard referred to as moon blue. She was clothed in a dress that had the appearance of a lick of flame and she had the most intense red hair the girl had ever seen. Some shades of red she'd seen among myds and humans could be described anywhere along the spectrum from ginger through to blood red, but _this_...this woman's hair could only be described as the color of faceted rubies being struck by sunlight, casting a fainter red glow on everything around them. Her eyes were that same intense hue. If Pidge thought in such terms, she might have called the fairy beautiful, but she'd never really thought of anything as being beautiful. That type of thinking was beyond her. Whatever the case may have been, there was something inarguably _magnetic_ about this girl. It took Pidge a moment to summon up the courage to answer her.

"My brother. I came to ask for help finding my brother."

"Katelyn!" her father started sharply.

"Hello, Princess," Hunk interrupted with a polite nod, letting Pidge know without any other explanation exactly _why_ her father was freaking out about her direct address. "I believe you've spoken with Allura and Coran before, but I also have the honor of introducing you to Samuel Holt, King Alfor's chief engineer, and Katelyn Holt, his daughter."

"A pleasure," the princess said with a light smile, nodding to the two humans.

"Samuel, Katie, this is Princess Malocoti, youngest daughter of Queen Te-osh and heir to the dragon line," Hunk introduced.

"An honor, Princess," Samuel said, bowing low before the fey princess. Everyone waited for Pidge to react one way or the other, but she just kept staring up at the princess, mesmerized.

"Is your brother missing?" Malocoti finally asked her. With the way the fairy was looking at her, Pidge almost got the feeling she was looking straight into her – past her clothing and skin and muscle and bone and straight into the heart of everything she was.

"Yes," she finally managed to answer after a time, wrenching the word from deep within her throat. "For many months now. I had hoped...your mother might know something about the matter."

"I could not tell you all of the things my mother knows," the princess said as she glided toward her, her voice both soft and cutting by turns. "But you seem to me a good soul who will fight the battle until it is won. I hope you find your brother someday." As she finished, Malocoti reached forward to take Pidge's hand in hers. Then she drew it up to her lips and brushed a kiss along her knuckles. At the contact, Pidge felt a lightning spark travel along her nerves, like something snapping awake in her. She drew in a sharp breath in an attempt to contain the sudden bolt of lightning within her, staring up at the princess in rapture as she smiled warmly down at her.

"Th- thank you," Pidge said, having to tear the words from her throat yet again when all she really wanted to do was stare at the fairy princess. When Malocoti nodded and began to drift away once again, all Pidge could manage to do was stare after her.

"Pidge? Speechless? Okay, now I've seen everything," Lance said with an uneasy laugh.

"Do you suppose- maybe they really _do_ know something?" Coran was the one to pose the question.

"Who could say," Allura said quietly, a troubled look moving across her face. "Whatever the case, it seems it will be a very interesting Time for us."

Pidge vaguely noted somewhere in the back of her mind that they were all speaking, but she was still caught up in the spell of the fairy princess. It was the first time in months she'd thought of something other than Matt, but she couldn't properly identify what this something was, and she hadn't yet decided if it was good or bad.

As her own princess had said, this was going to be a very interesting Time.

XxX

"Just what is it you're trying to imply, Sendak?" Allura demanded of the king of Drowl, every inch the queen she would one day be. Though the king sat at the opposite end of the table from her, she hardly needed more than her own commanding presence for her voice to carry down to him.

"Imply? I imply nothing. It's a _fact_ that the well being improperly sealed directly benefits the kingdom of Arus. If the children of the water were truly serious about containing the Galra threat and closing that gateway, they would have done it by now. How is it that a well-organized, well-trained, well- _funded_ military cannot defeat a band of scavengers?"

"Maybe it's because _somebody_ keeps giving them weapons?" Lance suggested under his breath.

"For all we know, it was Honerva's plan from the start, to open the well and use its gifts for the benefit of her own people, risking the balance of this world. Was she even truly ill all those years ago?"

That one got Lance to speak up. "You're _daring_ to accuse _my mother_ of-"

"Peace, brother," Acxa interrupted him firmly, keeping her gaze fixed upon the human king. "As for you...as someone who had to witness the progression of my own mother's wasting sickness firsthand, I will have _no one_ make light of what she suffered. That line of conversation ends _now_."

"As you wish, _Princess,_ " the king said with a mocking sort of obeisance. "But whatever the truth of its opening, the rest of us are left wondering why the well hasn't been properly sealed. Of course the quintessence still exists in this world in the form of the Galra. I should think the only way to shut its effects down is to seal it back up. So surely it's not for concern of the _Galra_ that the well remains unsealed. So the only other question left to ask is...why won't your sorcerers just reseal it? It would certainly eliminate the need to even _have_ this conversation."

The only response any of the mermyds gave was a slightly cooler expression. Pidge even saw Allura's expression darken. No one would say it, but they all knew the real reason none of them would risk tampering with the well was because they didn't know what effect it might have on Shiro. The mer captain's only change in expression was a brief closing of the eyes, but Pidge knew him well enough to read the guilt in that expression.

"What happened the last time someone tampered with that seal? Hmm?" Acxa parried. "If you'd like to tamper with it now without fully understanding what the consequences might be, be my guest. As for myself, I would not risk harm to such a delicate balance."

"And what about you, Your Eternal Highness?" Sendak sneered down at the fey woman who sat at the head of the council table. "Don't you have anything to say about this? Your folk _always_ have something to say about the balance of things."

Queen Te-osh did not acknowledge the man's disrespectful prodding at first. The fairy queen, with her pale green skin and her flaring red hair, was certainly striking; although Pidge would have to say she didn't find her _nearly_ as drawing as her daughter. In spite of her fey looks, though, her lavender eyes put everything else to shame in this moment. Lavender was only the closest color Pidge could decide on to express what those eyes looked like. She was sure she'd seen no color exactly like it anywhere before. She almost didn't seem to be present at the meeting, entrancing eyes far and away from the delegates, as if it were all so beneath her notice. Pidge knew the look. It was a look she and Matt shared, like there were far more important things happening and no way to make other people understand that. When the fairy queen finally managed to bring her attention back into the present moment, it was with an intense focus on the center of the table.

"Thy Mother's cheeks are moistened. As tears fall from mine eye," she began in a voice like distant thunder, "So thou, o martyred one, shall take thine own starlit hair and wipe them dry."

"Mother?" Malocoti asked in a quiet voice, clearly understanding no more than any of the rest of them.

"What's the old bat talking about?" Pidge heard Sendak hiss.

"True and fateful child...who offers the quickening of life by a touch of the redemption of Man within your heart..." she said, the thunder of her voice falling off into the softer patter of rain as her gaze slowly fell on Allura. "Be its kindling."

"Queen- Te-osh?" Allura pressed uncertainly. When the fairy queen finally seemed to hear them all again, she slowly shook her head.

"I apologize, Princess. I am uncertain if it is the future or the past that calls me. The truth of the well is- difficult to explain...but it has always been centered around a willing heart. It seems to me that there is little your kingdoms will agree on when no side will present a viable solution for the cessation of hostilities," she said, looking around at each of the delegates in turn, letting each of them know that no one was truly blameless in the current situation. "So until it is understood, it seems to me it would be easier to adjourn for the evening. Except for you, Katelyn Holt," the fairy queen said to her as the others rose from the table.

Pidge had been in the middle of rising herself when the request actually dawned on her. When she looked to the queen, the fey woman gave her a vague smile and a nod. When she glanced between Coran, her father, and Allura, they all looked just as surprised as she felt.

"I...is it..."

"The queen of Faerie herself has presented you with a summons," her father told her. "You came seeking her, so you must answer to her." Then he laid a hand atop her head for a single fleeting moment before dispersing with Coran and the rest of their guards.

"Good luck, Pidge," Allura said, comforting her with a single grip of her shoulder before making her own exit.

Lance and Hunk and even Florona all gave her hugs on their way out of the hall. Acxa and Olia each offered a reassuring grip of their own. Shiro was the last one to leave the hall, looking uncertainly between the queen and the youngest member of his little pod.

"Your nature does you credit, Captain, but there is no need to fear. Your little wing will be safe here," Te-osh assured him as she rose from the table along with her daughter. "I know you do not trust easily, but I hope you will at least trust the girl to handle herself."

Shiro stiffened at this, eyes darting between the queen and Pidge one last time. Then he sighed as he turned from the fairy queen. "I trust Katelyn to the ends of the world, but it is harder to trust to power I know she has no concept of," he said as he looked to Pidge, the expression he offered her an old and familiar one, plainly saying that she knew where she could find him should she need him. Giving a nod of understanding, she swallowed heavily as he swam from the hall, returning her focus to the fey woman.

"Come to me, child," she called softly, extending a hand out to her. "I understand you are one of ours."

"That's true," Pidge responded as she slowly moved down the length of the table, lowering her head deferentially to the queen, though she didn't leave her head down for long.

"If it be so indeed, then tell me the name the North Wind whispered to you on the night of your birth. Shed that human name among your sisters and become who you were born to be," the queen said, her tone the very definition of regal.

"I am the child of SilverMoon and StarBrooke," Pidge declared formally, feeling a shiver of power in her bones as she gave voice to her fey name for the first time in her life. "And the name the North Wind carried down from the Fair Isle on the night it gave me life is StarBrush, one who paints the light of the stars upon the face of the world."

The queen sighed in pleasure at this, offering up an easy smile as she moved forward to drop a kiss on Pidge's forehead. "Light of the stars, indeed. It seems my youngest child has taken a liking to you. She has marked you as one of her own."

Pidge glanced toward Malocoti on hearing this, feeling something inside of her glow at the princess' tender smile. She didn't really know what it meant, but she didn't see how it could be anything bad.

"It will mean little to you in _this_ life, Katelyn, to know the touch of the princess' favor, but for now I simply want to ask you what it is that brought you to us."

As she gazed up at the much taller women, Pidge suddenly felt the weight of the days since Matt's disappearance descending on her. Her brother had always been there for her, had _never_ given up on her, even when everyone else said she must be mad. Without him by her side, it had been difficult to endure the small-mindedness of the world around her. If he was really dead – _No!_ He couldn't be dead! He just _couldn't!_

"I _know_ my brother is alive!" she insisted as she struggled to hold back the sudden onslaught of emotion, fighting to ignore the beginning pricks of tears behind her eyes. "I just _know._ If he were dead, I'd know it. I know our friends _want_ to believe that, but...it's hard for them...when he's been gone so long."

"So what is it you would ask of me?"

"You can see- so much," she near-hissed, clenching her hands into fists as she looked down at the floor. "If you can't- bring him home...can you at least tell me where he is?"

Pidge could feel the queen's gaze on her for several minutes while she waited for a response. She didn't look up at her because she didn't want to know what it was the fairy might say. When she finally _did_ respond, it was with the hope the girl had been cleaving to.

"You are not wrong- to believe that your brother lives. If he were dead, I would be able to see that."

"So he _is_ alive?!" Pidge shouted in joy as she looked up. "Where?! Where is he?"

"That's just it. The boy is hidden from my sight. Someone does not _want_ him to be found," the queen explained.

"And...you can't do a thing?" Pidge pressed, her fragile hope hanging by a few threads.

"All I can offer you, StarBrush...Katelyn, is a wish. A single wish, and the hope that you will use it wisely."

At this, Te-osh signaled Malocoti forward. The flame-haired princess approached Pidge with a hopeful smile on her face, slowly reaching her hands up.

"With your permission..." she started, sounding a little...nervous?

"Yes. Of course," Pidge returned, feeling her mouth go dry and her heart leap into her throat when the princess stepped into her personal space. Permission obtained, Malocoti took her face gently between her hands and pressed a kiss of her own to Pidge's forehead.

For all the similarity in gesture, this was completely unlike the kiss Queen Te-osh had bestowed on her. Pidge's body trembled with a sudden sense of pleasure as power built between them. With a fresh lightning _snap_ , she felt something in her come awake. Her own lips fell open as she gasped in sudden awareness. It was as if she'd spent her whole life in a darkened room and light was now pouring in through a window she hadn't even known was there. Her fey blood had been called, the spark within awakened. In a single moment, the power between them actually crystalized into a tiny glowing gem. As a single golden thread manifested about the small pendant and came to rest around her neck, the little thing cast forth an intense green light.

When Malocoti pulled away from her, Pidge pursued her briefly, wanting _more_ – more knowledge, more power, more _what_ she didn't really know. She just knew that she _wanted_. But the princess stopped her with a tender smile and a single finger to her lips.

"Not yet. You have what you came for."

"I...it...wha-" she fumbled, glancing down as her fingers sought the pendant now around her neck.

"A wish," Te-osh answered in response to her unasked question. "You may ask for one wish and it will be granted to you, but you must be sure to ask for the right thing."

"So...what's to stop me from just wishing to have my brother back?" she asked as she looked up at the queen.

The queen gave a barely discernible shrug to that. "You could, but you strike me as the sort who would rather achieve her victories through her own means. How will you feel if you waste such a wish on an end you could've accomplished with your own two hands? You would do well not to call on that wish unless you find yourself at the utmost end of need...if you have done everything you can. Your brother is alive. _You_ have the power to save him. Can you look me in the eye and tell me you've done _everything_ you can to rescue him?" she asked, looking down at Pidge through narrowed eyes.

"No," Pidge admitted, knowing the old her would've thrown the queen's words away in a heartbeat. But something had changed within her in these last ten minutes. There were things she understood about magic and quintessence and her own power that she hadn't before. It wouldn't be so easy as that to get Matt back. "There's still something I can do."

"Then I wish you well, child of SilverMoon and StarBrooke. Do not waste our gift," Te-osh advised as she and Malocoti began to move away from the table and down the corridor that led back to the Fair Isle.

For a moment, just a moment, Pidge thought she could see beyond them, out past the white, featureless walls of the sanctuary and into the heart of Faerie itself. The Fair Isle wasn't a half-barren deserted island in the middle of nowhere. No. Far from it. It was a lush paradise, a precious jewel floating on a sea of glass, reflecting back the light of colors she hadn't known existed until this moment.

And as Malocoti rejoined with that vision, her features blossoming with even greater spectrums of color than Pidge could have ever imagined, the young woman thought that, maybe – for the first time in her life – she had seen something beautiful.

XxX

Pidge wouldn't discuss what had happened with Queen Te-osh with anyone, and of course none of them were quite bold enough to ask the fairy queen herself about it. The young woman was contemplatively silent throughout the rest of the meetings, mulling over a fabulous emerald pendant the queen had given her. Her friends and family were all relieved to see she hadn't come to any sort of harm in the queen's presence, physical or otherwise, had simply been given some things to think about. Their relief did not mean they were not curious, though. By the time everyone departed the Fair Isle, they were all curious about just what it was that made Pidge contemplate that little pendant so intently.

Often at night, she would sit out on deck, turning the gem over in her fingers and gazing out to sea. Even when storms started to roll in and the weather began to turn against them, Pidge seemed not to feel the cut of the angry wind or the spray of the violent sea. She would just sit alone, staring. Some nights, one of the mermyds would sit up with her, lingering in the water or climbing up into the ratlines of the ship. Tonight it was Lance, who had heaved himself up out of the water to sit beside her on the gunwale, even as the night rains began to lash against the deck.

"So what's it going to take to convince you to get below?" Lance asked, voice pitched a little louder to carry over the rising wind.

"Let _me_ ask _you_ something. How is it that a _mermyd's_ afraid to get wet?" she returned, eyes glinting in amusement.

"The difference here being that I can still _breathe_ when I get wet. You, on the other hand, might have a little trouble with that if you got pitched over the side with this storm coming," Lance pointed out.

"I'm not worried. You'd just fish me out again if I went overboard."

Lance gave a mild glare at that one. "You _know_ how we feel about the fish talk, Pidge."

"Right, right. Sorry, sorry," she rambled off, attention shifting back down to the crystal resting on her breast.

"What I don't get is why you can't contemplate your new jewelry down in your cabin. I'm pretty sure it looks the same down there as it does up here."

Pidge's nostrils flared in annoyance. "First of all, it's not just a piece of jewelry. It's-"

"Pidge!" Allura's call interrupted them as the princess appeared on deck, coming to stand next to them. "You really must come below tonight. The captain says the storm's only going to get worse."

"But I'm only-"

" _Down!_ " Lance shouted, throwing his much heavier body at Pidge and Allura and throwing them all down on the ship's deck.

For a moment, through the winds of the storm, he'd heard a familiar sound – a sound he'd hoped never to hear again. He'd had only moments to act, so he'd acted on instinct, and that instinct was proven right when a harpoon buried itself in the wood of the mast right where Allura's head would've been.

Following the line extending out from the harpoon, they all looked on in shock as the line began to reel in, drawing a Galra warrior up out of the water and onto the ship.

The creature's yellow eyes glowed as it growled at them, and at first, none of them understood what was happening. What more could this monster do than lie there and flop its tail? But that question was answered all too soon.

After a moment of wriggling, the Galra squeezed its eyes shut, hissing and making sounds of discomfort and outright pain. But as the moments wore on, the creature's tail actually began to _split_. As the creature writhed in agony, the mutilated halves of its tail began to change form.

"Oh, _gods,_ " Lance whispered in horror at the sight. They were helpless to do anything but watch as the horribly mangled tail transformed into a pair of whole, perfectly-formed human legs.

Once the creature had settled in its form, it slowly rose up on its new feet, offering them an unhinged smile as its eyes glowed a little brighter. As it began to move toward them, several more harpoons struck the masts and the gunwale. Finally managing to clear her head, Allura shouted for the night watch.

"We're under attack! Call up the guard!"

Within minutes, a complete compliment of Galra warriors had drawn themselves up on deck, transforming even as the guards were rolling out of their berths belowdecks. Allura and Lance were both armed with daggers, but Lance knew he wasn't going to be of much use on dry land. When one of the invaders came at them, Allura stepped up to defend them while Lance kept the unarmed Pidge shielded.

It wasn't long before the deck was roiling with chaotic battle, human soldiers fighting tooth and nail against Galra warriors. When one got by Allura, Lance actually managed to whip up his tail and send the creature to its knees.

"Allura! Do you have a whistle?" Lance demanded over the raging of the storm.

"It's a ship! Of _course_ I have a whistle!"

"Toss it here!"

" _Why?_ "

"Just do it! I don't have time to explain it!"

Growling in frustrated anger, the princess tossed her small deck whistle to the prince. Lance raised the tiny instrument to his lips and piped out a quick, sharp progression of notes. It didn't take long for new heads to bob up from the water. The next thing any of them knew, the Galra Allura had been fighting was standing there with a spear head protruding from its chest, its spine impaled upon Shiro's spear as the captain pulled himself up out of the roaring waves, a look of fury in his eyes to match the worst mid-winter gale.

"What's going on?" he demanded as he heaved himself up into the ratlines, taking a better position than Lance had to strike at their enemies. He was quickly followed by Acxa, Olia, and Hunk.

"We don't know. It's the _Galra,_ Shiro!" Lance cried out.

"But how can they be _here?_ " Olia asked, the force of her spear strike strong enough to impale two Galra who just happened to be unlucky enough to be standing close together. "How is this possible?"

"Don't talk. Fight!" Acxa snapped, taking a spear from one of the dead Galra and tossing it to Lance, who was quickly climbing up into the ratlines with the rest of them.

"Pidge! _Kate!_ Where are you?" her father's voice came through the sea of battle.

"Here, Papa! Here! I need a knife!"

"Come at me, you bottomfeeders," Coran's voice was soon joining in the fray.

"Captan, my sword!

" _Allura!_ "

Shiro's panicked cry alerted the princess to the enemy coming at her from behind, allowing her to turn just in time, sword in hand, to block the creature's spear strike.

It was a battle well-fought, but the humans and mermyds had ultimately been caught unawares. As the roaring waves thrashed and heaved, claiming both human and Galra dead, a lone voice rose above the rage of the storm.

" _HOLD!_ " the voice called out, ugly in its familiarity. As a new wave crashed on the deck, it gracefully deposited a figure with the same ugly familiarity upon the wooden planking. Lotor – standing there on two fully-formed human legs, with nothing more than a belted dagger at his side and a spear in hand. At the half-blood's command, his warriors immediately ceased fighting, withdrawing to stand beside him.

"Lotor," Shiro snarled, the hate in his voice plain even above the howling wind.

"This fighting is pointless, really," the part-Galra declared, voice carrying over the noise of the storm. "I'm sure even _you_ lot realize how hopelessly outnumbered you are."

"We will never surrender to the _Galra!_ " Olia shouted in defiance.

"Oh, really?" he asked, raising a single perfect eyebrow as he looked up at the Guardswoman hanging aloft in the shrouds. "That's unfortunate. I suppose we'll just have to begin from square one."

With that, Lotor drew his dagger and flung it at the rope holding Shiro up, neatly severing the line. With a sharp cry, the captain fell to the deck, body crashing heavily and painfully against the wood.

"Shiro!" Allura cried out, rushing to his side.

"I'm all right. I'm all right," he tried to reassure her, though he was clearly in pain. Before any of the other myds could react, the other Galra had done the same to their lines, sending them all crashing helplessly to the deck.

"Lotor!" Acxa began in anger, coiling her tail beneath her in her best effort to sit upright. "How have you done this?"

"Well, that's what you don't understand about Galra blood, isn't it...dear sister," he said as he strode proudly toward the heir apparent, on full display for all to see. "The power of the Galra is the power to affect _change_. Why do you think it was sought in the _first place?_ " he snarled as he bent over the downed princess, wrapping a hand around her throat and lifting her up in the air.

"Acxa!" Lance cried out in fear as Lotor tossed her through the air, the full weight of her mer body crashing against one of the masts and sending her half senseless to the floor.

"Princess!" Shiro shouted.

Acxa looked up at her enemy, dazed but with anger in her eyes. "You're no- brother of mine... _wretch!_ " she snarled before collapsing again, blood seeping from a fresh cut on her forehead.

"I _beg_ to differ... _Princess_ ," Lotor said with a note of disdain, even though she likely couldn't hear him. "The same blood that flows in your veins flows in mine. You only had the good fortune of being born first. We will see who is a worthy ruler."

" _Lotor!_ " Allura challenged in rage as she shot to her feet, keeping her position beside Shiro. "To attack an emissary vessel on a diplomatic mission is nothing less than an act of war and it will be treated as such. We will give you one chance to withdraw your forces."

"Chance?" Lotor repeated, eyebrows rising in amused interest as he looked to the Altean princess. "What position are you in, exactly, to be giving me chances? If anything, you are at my mercy."

"How dare you?" Shiro hissed as he glared up at the Galra leader, the quiet outrage in his voice somehow carrying over the raging storm.

Lotor shifted his gaze to the mermyd at the princess' feet, his condescending smile still in place. "Sorry? What was that, Shirogane?"

"How _dare you_ ," the captain began again, voice louder, "bring your war to these people? How dare you involve them? Altea is not part of this. Your fight is with _us!_ Leave them be."

Lotor laughed as he walked toward them, wet hair whipped to a frenzy by the lashing rain and gale winds. "Well, you're _here_ , aren't you? We will fight our enemies wherever they are. Victory or death. But Altea is as much a part of this as anything else. They will not escape judgement for what was done. Besides, Shirogane, I think we all know you don't _really_ care about them," he said as he bent to look Shiro in the eye, clawed hand tracing a delicate line along the side of his face, down his throat and over his heart. Then he leaned in close to whisper in his ear, "All you care about is _her,_ and so long as you are near her, she will be in danger. But I think you know that," he finished, giving the captain's ear a small nip. Shiro didn't seem to notice it, though. When Lotor pulled away from him, he was left with a look of pained horror on his face.

"What did you say to him?" Allura demanded as the Galra leader stood once more, not backing down though he plainly towered over her.

"Nothing he didn't already know. Takashi just needs to be reminded of what he is from time to time," Lotor said, crossing his arms over his chest in a nonchalant fashion.

" _You leave him alone,_ " Allura actually snarled up at the half-blood. "Your kind have put him through enough. What say you to my terms, Galra?" she demanded, getting as far in his face as she could.

Again, Lotor laughed. "You know, Princess, if you intend to declare war against me, it will require you to acknowledge me as a worthy adversary – as someone of equal rank. You will have to call me 'Prince'," he told her, placing himself solidly within her personal space.

" _Never,_ " Allura hissed back, not giving even a single step of ground between them.

"Go on. Say it. Out loud," he encouraged her in a suddenly breathless voice, hands tracing up her arms, not actually touching her skin until his fingers came to rest on her shoulders. "Prince Lotor."

"No," she fired back, never once shifting her gaze from his. "You will get no such satisfaction from me."

"Come now, _Princess._ Would it really be so terrible? Come on. Lotor. _Prince_ Lotor. Just one little name," he continued to press, hands traveling further up until they hovered just above her throat, making it plain to everyone watching where _he_ thought the power between them lay.

"I will not. The only power you have is the power I give you, and I will give you nothing," Allura said firmly, still glaring up at him, and it was this defiance that caused Lotor to stop being gentle.

With an angry snarl, the part-Galra wrapped his fingers mercilessly around her throat and _squeezed,_ pulling her directly against his body, clearly wanting her to feel _all_ of him. Pressing his lips to her ear as he'd done with Shiro, he hissed, "Is that what you think? That I have no power here? We'll just _see_ who has no power, _Princess Allura!_ " he growled before lifting her up into the air as he'd done with Acxa. The princess gave a strangled gasp of pain as his grip tightened even further, barely allowing her enough air to breathe. Her eyes bulged as they turned to the sky.

" _Allura!_ " Shiro cried out in horror, but as he moved to help, he found himself held back by two Galra, one of them holding a dagger to his throat.

" _Say my name!_ " Lotor shrieked into the wind as lightning flashed overhead, rain and waves lashing down ever more violently upon the crippled ship.

"Allura!" Coran shouted, trying to move in to help her, but quickly forced back by more of the Galra warriors.

"You _will_ do this, especially if you want your precious captain to live!"

At first, all of the others thought this might actually be the end – that Allura might really have no choice but to submit to the Galra pretender – but then they began to notice the look that was actually on the princess' face. There was pain there, yes, but a tiny, triumphant smile was working its way onto her face as her hands snaked up to wrap around Lotor's wrist.

"You think- you know- where you stand... _Lotor_ ," she choked out derisively as she smiled down at him. "You don't- know anything. Permit me...to enlighten you- about a certain piece of anatomy you currently possess," she finished before driving her knee as hard as she could into the defenseless flesh of his groin.

Lotor screamed in hideous agony as he released Allura. They both dropped like stones through water, Lotor curling in on himself in pain and Allura coughing violently as air flooded back into her lungs.

"Allura!" Shiro cried out in desperation, dragging himself toward her across the rain-slicked deck as the rest of the Galra moved to help their leader.

Lotor was far past incensed. All he could manage to do was lie there in shock, crying out in pain. Frightened by the pain the princess had inflicted on their leader and receiving no instruction from him, the warriors simply retrieved the half-blood and retreated. While the surviving crew and the myds began to regroup to tally their losses, Shiro pulled himself forward until he was lying beside Allura, reaching a trembling hand out to touch her cheek.

"T- Takashi," she coughed out, smiling faintly at him as she laid a hand over his. "Are you- all right?"

"Me? Am _I_ all right?" the captain repeated in disbelief, using his thumb to wipe away some of the rain on her cheek. "Who cares if I'm all right? He might have _killed_ you."

" _I_ do," the princess interjected, a small flicker of anger burning in her eyes.

"What?"

" _I_ care if you're all right," she said as she pulled him in close to her, tenderly pressing their foreheads together. "If you...if you-"

"It's all right," he soothed her, wrapping his arms and tail around her and holding her shivering body as close to his as he could. "It's all right. Everything's- all right."

"You can't die. You can't die," she whispered over and over again. "You just _can't!_ "

Neither of them took the time to question it. As the rain continued to pour down on them and the world continued to turn around them, the princess and the mermyd just clung tightly to each other, both ignorant of everything but the one they held in their arms. Neither would admit it once the rain stopped, but while it hid them they wept bitterly, taking the moment of uninhibited intimacy for everything they could.

None of their companions made any attempt to separate them.

XxX

(A/N) Eheh, yeah. That's the trouble with showing off the manliness of your prowess. You're kinda gonna leave yourself vulnerable. Hope everything's still working well for everybody. We're finally getting into the Little Mermaid proper.


	6. Fall Upon Your Knees, Sing

(A/N) So has anybody noticed that, despite how large their presence looms in this world, neither Zarkon nor Haggar has properly made an appearance in this story? We've only really seen them in Shiro's nightmares. Well...I'm about to remedy that.

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 6: Fall Upon Your Knees, Sing_

 _The revealed ability of the Galra to change their form brought a pall of despair to the war. Altea was drawn into the fighting, with battles occurring on land, in the sea, and on ships in between. Unfamiliar with the way their weapons functioned out of water, many of the queen's soldiers had to undergo training for out of water combat to be of any help during shipboard battles, leaving their human allies vulnerable while they did. As such, the kingdom by the sea suffered many casualties._

 _When it came to be after a great battle that reaped a great many dead on all sides, including the captain of the Guard, a clamor rose among the members of the Guard who remained for the young acting captain to lead them in battle. But in spite of all the voices crying for it, in spite of the desire of the Guardsman himself, the queen still would not give in to the demand, and it seemed that only she knew the reason why. What the sea queen did instead was to call for a secret meeting with the leader of the Galra forces_ – _her former husband..._

 _...and her sister._

XxX

Honerva could almost feel the weight of the ocean bearing down upon her as she swam through the darkened waters. She had not come near this place in nigh on twenty years – not since she'd carried little Shiro from the ruins of the gateway, barely alive.

Not much had changed in the intervening years. The ruins of a crumbled temple lay scattered about the deeps of the Naxzela Rift. Lines of power glowed in the gloom where their dimension was beginning to split with the strain of the barely sealed gateway – crackling lines of red and blue energy interspersed with flashes of green and yellow, all running to the center of the rift to coalesce as an eerie purple light spilling forth from the cracks in a large stone seal. Above that seal, cast into unsettling relief and shadow by the light, were the two people she loved and hated most in all the world.

The years had not been kind. Though Zarkon and Haggar had both been stricken with the appearance of the Galra curse they had called into existence, they had also been left with their minds intact, fully aware of the state they were in. Unlike their maddened Galra followers, who were little more than beasts with barely enough presence of mind to take orders. Had she not known these two and been aware of all they'd sacrificed for her, no sight in all the seas would have been more terrifying than this pair of haunted figures.

Zarkon's now lavender skin was mostly concealed by rough-hewn crimson armor, close in shade to the deep red color of his tail. He had a fearsome look about him, but his features softened when he saw her approaching. She would've loved nothing better than to swim right up to him and throw her arms around him, but she held herself back, maintaining her composure on her approach. Though she did swim closer to the former king than any other would've done, close enough to embrace him, but they both held themselves back.

"Honerva," the Galra ruler said softly, reaching a hand forward to trace through the water just above her cheek. It was a terrible temptation for the queen to just lean a little further through the water to connect them, but neither would dare to breach that minute distance between them – not after everything that had happened.

"Zarkon," she exhaled on a broken breath, knowing her eyes were reddening as she looked on her love.

"How long has it been?"

"Near- nearly twenty years."

"Acxa and the others...how fare they? My son...my daughters..."

"Acxa is strong. She grows wiser and more beautiful every day. She is _ready_ to be queen. Rolo is as handsome as you were in your youth and his music could charm an oyster of its pearl. Plaxum is intelligent and stubborn," she reported with a faint smile.

"Just like her mother," the former king noted with a small smile of his own. "And Florona? My fair seastar?"

"The loveliest mermaid ever to grace the waves. She is pregnant, you know...soon to bear our first grandchild."

"Heh, who by?"

"A young fey lad she met during the Time of Accords."

"And...Blaytz's children? They are well?" Zarkon asked stiffly.

"Very well. Thank you for asking," she returned quietly, knowing how it must pain him to acknowledge the existence of Lance and the twins, but really, it was no less painful for her to acknowledge _Lotor's_ existence.

"Sister," Haggar interrupted in a thin, ragged voice, her vocal cords no doubt scarred from years of grating them on forbidden spells. Most of her features were concealed beneath a dark, voluminous cloak, but Honerva could still see the glow of her eyes and her now white hair peeking out from beneath the hood.

"My sister," Honerva returned with a pained look at the squalid creature that was her beloved sibling. "We have to bring this fighting to an end."

Haggar's features twisted into a sneer at this. "If that is your wish, then you _know_ what you must do. Give me the child."

"I will never, Haggar. You know I cannot. I cannot allow an innocent life to be given in place of my own."

"Is the boy so innocent? After all, he consented to the deed," Haggar reminded her.

"Because you left him with no other choice."

"My queen," the witch began formally, "I told you twenty years since and I will tell you again, if you want your kingdom to live in peace, if you want your _own_ life, there is only one way. _My_ way. You _must_ give him to me, give him to the seal. It is the only way to stop all of this."

" _I don't believe that!_ " the queen snarled at her sister in a moment of unchecked anger and despair. When she'd managed to release it, she was left sucking water in through her gills. "I...I _can't_. I _will not_ buy peace with more bloodshed. There _has_ to be another option."

"There isn't. Well you know that the boy would gladly give his life for you and for those he loves. Why won't you let him?" she hissed as she began to circle the queen.

"I _do_ know it, and that's _why_...that's why _someone_ has to protect him, when he will not protect himself."

"Is that what you'll say to the rest of your people when your kingdom collapses around you? That you chose to protect one child over protecting your entire kingdom?"

"If I cannot- protect one child...I can protect no one. If it takes the very last breath in my body, I will undo what you've done, Haggar," she promised, glaring down at the creature who continued to slither circles around her. The witch hissed in outrage.

"I will have no such promises from _you_ , Honerva. What have you given that I have not? I gave up _everything_ for you! Everything I was or ever might have been, all in your name, and _this_ is the gratitude I receive?"

"I never asked you to. You chose this way yourself, Sister. You knew what would come of it. If anyone has caused this madness, it's you. Why do not _you_ give yourself to the seal?" Honerva pressed, much as the thought pained her.

"Believe me, I would. Either of us would, but you said it yourself. _We_ caused this. We have done wrong. The well will accept no other. Sadly, our lives will not save yours, else we would give them and gladly. But you know the truth. It is down to you...and it is down to the boy. I know you have kept the truth of the Galra from your people, but there is only so much change their blood will purchase. Time is running out...for you and for him. I can hear the clock tick, the sounds of his breath...how many beats does he have left, Sister?"

"And that is why I agreed to this meeting at all," Honerva finally said to them. "I think you know what offer I would make."

"And _you_ know we will never allow that," Zarkon cut in. "There is little point to even discussing something none of us will ever agree to. Honerva... _please._ What is one child?"

Honerva gazed upon her love in sorrow for several long moments. Much as she still loved him, she knew he had been far gone even twenty years ago – to say something so heartless...

"What is one woman?" she returned, her voice breaking. "It is not so simple a thing as that. I am most precious to the two of you, that much is true, but to someone else, _Takashi_ is most precious. There is someone who would move Heaven and Earth for his smile alone. Can _you_ decide who must sacrifice what they love most? That is why, my love...my sister, I will never let you do this. I can see we're- we're not going to agree," she finished with a heavy sigh.

"So be it," Haggar said, her voice just as heavy as she came to a stop before her, reaching across the space between them to touch Honerva's cheek. The queen immediately felt something shift within her, knowing it was a mistake to allow the touch. "Go from this place, beloved sister. Leave all to us. This fight will continue until every last Galra lies dead...or you surrender Takashi Shirogane to me. That choice is yet before you."

Honerva shook her head in disbelief as she slowly moved back from them, even then unable to believe they would take such a drastic measure. Speaking no more, she turned and swam away from them. By the time she'd reached the far end of the rift, where Blaytz, Trigel, and Gyrgan were waiting for her, she could already feel her strength leaving her.

"What happened?" Trigel asked as she swam to them.

"Nothing has changed. They are as hard-hearted as ever they were," she said faintly, her eyelids flickering, suddenly feeling heavy as she looked down at her hands. The skin was already growing pale.

"So what can we do?" Blaytz pressed. "We're not just going to hand Shiro to them are we?"

"I...I will not...it isn't- something's..." she struggled to get the words out, but she was fast losing her grip on coherency.

"Honerva...what's wrong?" Gyrgan suddenly demanded, beginning to see the changes Haggar's contact spell had begun to wreak.

"I was...foolish...never- thought... _please,_ " she begged them at the last, reaching out to grip her lover by the wrist, "you mustn't let him fight!" They were the last coherent words she spoke before falling unconscious in Blaytz's arms.

"Honerva!" the general cried out in worry.

"She's so pale," Trigel noted, her voice tense as she checked the queen's gills for the flutter of breath. "My queen, please. Wake up!" she pressed, shaking her, but just as soon as she'd touched the queen's arm, she flinched in shock. "Her skin's ice cold. Gyrgan, what's happening?"

"This is Haggar's work," the healer growled as he checked the queen over. "Her foul, unnatural power...this is the _witch's_ doing."

" _Witch!_ " Blaytz screamed into the rift, supporting Honerva's unmoving form in his arms. "What have you done? _What have you_ _ **done?!**_ "

"She left me no choice," the witch's voice came from high above them. The queen's three advisors looked up to see the two Galra exiting the rift from above. "She will awake when her life has been saved."

"Foul sorceress!" Trigel shouted. "Undo this spell! Undo it _right now!_ "

"You _know_ how to undo it," the former princess taunted them. "Simply give me the boy and all is mended. Don't be _fools_ like my sister."

" _HAGGAR!_ " Blaytz shrieked for all the ocean to hear as he passed the unresponsive queen into Gyrgan's arms. Then he hurled his spear through the water, up at the retreating pair. It was a throw that took near unimaginable strength, to cover that kind of distance, but Haggar only laughed, waving a hand to turn the projectile aside.

"All of this death is on the heads of those who protect the Shirogane!" she called to them one last time. "Every moment you keep Takashi Shirogane from me, more will die!"

Then they were gone, leaving the three advisors alone with their unconscious queen.

"Damnit! _Damnit!_ " Blaytz snarled, gripping his head in his hands in rage and despair. "What do we do? What _can_ we do?!"

"Shiro must not know," Trigel said softly as she stroked Honerva's greying hair. "If he were to learn- what the witch demands..."

"He would give himself up in a heartbeat," Gyrgan finished when she couldn't. He couldn't say for certain, but he couldn't help feeling that Shiro already _knew_ what would be asked of him in the end, but if they could keep him safe for even one more day, they were honor-bound to do so.

It had been Honerva's last wish.

XxX

 _With the wicked spell upon the queen, the kingdom descended even further into chaos. The fighting grew worse and worse, and though the queen's three advisors did their best to abide by her wishes, they had not the command of the queen herself. They could not shout down the voices that clamored for the new captain of the Guard's involvement in the war_ – _those voices that could never truly understand what it was for the captain to give himself to the war effort. Nonetheless, the captain was permitted to lead a cadre into battle, with certain stipulations upon just how much he was permitted to use his healing abilities._

 _Though the captain was only ever allowed to bring soldiers back from death's door and little else besides, it mattered hardly at all. Little by little, his dark hair turned white, until he had a head of hair that was half black and half white._

 _While the war continued to rage, the young fey blood had continued her research into her brother's disappearance, eventually coming up with a plausible theory. She came to believe that the Galra themselves had taken her brother for the purposes of studying human anatomy for the affectation of their transformations. If this was the case, he was most likely being kept alive somewhere as a test subject. When she approached the king with her theory, he immediately agreed to call for a negotiation with the Galra forces to discuss the situation._

 _In order to meet on neutral territory, the meeting was scheduled to take place aboard the king's flagship, the_ _ **Lionheart,**_ _with representatives from each faction present. Wanting to be present for the negotiations over their friend, the captain and his pod of young mermyds all insisted on being part of the contingent from Arus. Before the meeting was to take place, the young captain and the princess decided to meet one more time._

XxX

Allura stood alone in the cave when Shiro surfaced from the depths. She was dressed in a simple white and blue gown that barely concealed the shape of the battle armor she wore beneath it, though Shiro didn't really imagine it was meant to. More it was meant to state how easily the beautiful princess could transform into a warrior queen.

The sword that would normally be belted at her waist was laid upon one of the tumbles of small stones near the cave wall, hilt carefully wrapped by her belt. Something in her smile shifted, becoming warm and distant as he swam to lay his spear beside it.

"Who'd have thought it?" she said softly as she settled herself on the stone floor, just as she always did. "When we were only children...and we played here together...who would've thought it would come to this?" she mused as she watched him heave himself up on the stone ledge, reaching out a hand to run it over the shell and bone armor that protected the more vulnerable parts of his upper body. Shiro had to avoid looking at her to keep her from seeing how he was blushing.

"No one could have," he returned as he slipped the helmet from his head. He could almost feel Allura wince in the space next to him before she reached her hand up to touch his hair.

"Oh...your hair," she murmured in despair as she ran her fingers through it. They both knew it wouldn't be long before the white started to overtake the black. "Shiro..."

"What do you want me to say?" he asked with a sigh. "People will _die_ if I don't."

"What about _you?_ " she pressed, briefly seizing a lock of the white hair in an iron grip. "One day... _you_ will die...if you keep doing this."

"Maybe...that's as it should be," he suggested, reaching up to grip her hand in his, pulling it away from his hair, but not releasing the grip. "None of this would be happening if it weren't for me."

"You _know_ I won't have that kind of talk from you, Takashi Shirogane," she scolded with an angry glare. "You give yourself far too much credit."

"Do I? The Galra only exist in this world because of what _I did._ "

"What _they_ did. What they _used you_ to do. Will we never cease having this conversation?" she asked as she shook her head, eyes bright.

"No...I don't guess we will," he said slowly. "Not so long as this war leaves the people I care about in danger."

"Then we had best hope today's labors bear fruit."

"Not to seem like I'm wishing bad luck on this venture, but...somehow...I don't think they will," Shiro admitted. "If they really do have Matt, I don't see how they can afford to give him up. He's one of the few advantages they have in this war. I'll do whatever it takes to get him back, of course. I just- I don't think this is going to go the way Pidge wants it to."

Allura sighed as she leaned into him. He didn't hesitate even a moment before wrapping an arm around her. "I don't _want_ to say it, but I get the same feeling. Honestly, I feel like- like we're being _pushed_ into this...like strings we can't see are being pulled."

That, Shiro could understand, but he'd felt that way about a lot of things in his life. Really, some of the few times he _didn't_ feel like he was playing out a part someone else had written for him...were right here in this cave...with Allura...with Keith and Lance and Matt and all of them. Despite his own misgivings, _this_ was the only way they could get those times back. So he was going to do whatever was asked of him. If that meant this was the end of the line for him, then-

"Shiro?" Allura suddenly interrupted his dark thoughts. "Would you mind...well...will you sing for me?" she asked him.

"I...why?" he asked before he could stop himself.

"It's just- you're scaring me. I have this feeling you're not going to come back...that this is the last time I'm going to see you. It's been such a long time. I want to hear you sing...just once...just one more time. _Please,_ " she begged him, suddenly sounding desperate as she slid her arms around him, clinging just as tightly to him.

"All right," he agreed. It wasn't as if he _hadn't_ been thinking along the same lines as her just now – the thought that this might be the end...that he might never see her again after this moment. What did he want her to know...in case he never had the chance to tell her? "There's one I remember Mother singing.

 _There's a song that's inside of my soul_

 _It's the one that I've tried to write over and over again_

 _I'm awake in the infinite cold_

 _But you sing to me over and over and over again_

 _So I lay my head back down_

 _And I lift my hands and pray_

 _To be only yours, I pray_

 _To be only yours, I know now_

 _You're my only hope_

It was a risk he'd never dared to take before now – to sing to her like this, for fear she would see into his heart and know that these songs were more than just words to him – that they _were_ the heart of him. But right now he reached inside of himself and found only truth. The fear was gone. It didn't matter if she took his meaning or not. He was going to tell her how he loved her before he lost his chance forever. Cradling her tenderly against his body, he poured all of the love and devotion that was in him into the words of the song.

 _ **I love you...Allura...vi ma prinscia...this is how I love you.**_

 _Sing to me the song of the stars_

 _Of your galaxy dancing and laughing and laughing again_

 _When it feels like my dreams are so far_

 _Sing to me of the plans that you have for me over again_

 _So I lay my head back down_

 _And I lift my hands and pray_

 _To be only yours, I pray_

 _To be only yours, I know now_

 _You're my only hope._

He could feel tears flowing down his face as he sang, and despite the strangeness of the sensation, he didn't let it stop him. He took her face delicately between his hands and pressed his forehead against hers, singing the words only for her.

 _I give you my destiny_

 _I'm giving you all of me_

 _I want your symphony_

 _Singing in all that I am_

 _At the top of my lungs_

 _I'm giving it back._

 _So I lay my head back down_

 _And I lift my hands and pray_

 _To be only yours, I pray_

 _To be only yours, I know now_

 _You're my only hope._

As the last words faded away, he let his lips rest against her forehead, not quite kissing her, but much too intimate for anything else.

"Oh," the princess exhaled on a tremulous breath, " _Takashi..._ "

In nearly the same breath, they shifted to look each other in the eye. Shiro's breath caught in his throat, so much so it actually caused his gills to shift, seeking water instead of air. They were so close now, and her eyes were _so_ beautiful. All he would have to do would be to lean forward-

"Princess! Princess Allura!" the voice of Alfor's own captain of the guard, Kolivan, echoed into the cave. "It's time now! Where are you?"

All at once, the moment between them was broken. They pulled back from each other, neither looking the other in the eye for fear of what they might see.

"I- suppose we had best- get going," Allura stammered out awkwardly before climbing back to her feet. "You'll need to meet up with the others."

"Of course, but...Allura?" he started before he lost his nerve.

"Yes?" she asked, whirling around halfway through reaching for her sword. Shiro was too caught up in his own nerves to notice the flush high in her cheeks.

"I- I just...what you said before...about not coming back..."

"Shiro, why are you saying this?" she pressed him when he couldn't seem to finish.

"I- it's just...I want you to have this," he said, the words tumbling from his mouth in a hurry as he yanked something from his belt pouch, quickly thrusting it into her hand. Allura looked down, blinking to see a tonesphere shimmering in her hand.

"What- what is this?" she asked, even though she knew. Tonespheres were small, concentrated orbs of quintessence that many mer sorcerers used to keep record of their knowledge in lieu of writing things down. But in more recent decades, the merfolk had been using them to record music. This particular sphere shone with the myriad swirl of colors that danced across the deeps of the night sky. It was a song he was giving her. But which one?

"A song for you. Just...don't listen to it unless you _know_ I'm not coming back," he said firmly as he looked up at her.

"Shiro-"

"I'm serious, Allura," he warned her, reaching up again to take her free hand in both of his. "I know you don't want to hear that, but I need you to _promise me_ you won't activate that unless I'm really dead...unless Keith's brought you my spear. You might not be ready to hear those words yet, but...if the time _does_ come...I want you to have them," he said, resting his forehead against the back of her hand in supplication.

"A- all right," Allura finally conceded, a few tears escaping her eyes as she laughed. "I promise. But _you_ need to promise to at least _try_ to keep better care of your own life."

Shiro shrugged helplessly as he offered her a pained smile. "I can only do my best. These boys take so much looking after."

"That, I will not contest."

"I would kneel before you and swear, but...well, I don't have any knees, so that makes it a bit difficult," he joked, his smile growing a bit thinner.

Allura actually laughed out loud at this. "That- that was terrible," she choked out, wiping a few more tears from her eyes.

"It was...but you loved it," Shiro said softly, becoming serious again. When Allura looked down at him, she couldn't tell if his smile was about to become the brightest she'd ever seen it, or if he was about to break down in tears.

"I did," she agreed. "I _loved_ it...Shiro."

"Then I vow, as a descendent of Shirogane and the captain of House Malain's Guard, that I will do my best to come back to you," he swore before pressing a kiss of fealty to the hand he still held.

"I know you will," she reassured him, shifting her hand up out of his grasp, sliding it up his face to briefly tangle in the remaining black strands of his hair. Then she bent down to him and pressed a soft kiss of her own to his forehead, lingering as long as she could. When she pulled away, he couldn't quite help following after her a little, lifting his head to look up at her.

"I'll see you- when this is over," she said before finally going to retrieve her sword, quickly belting it and tucking the small tonesphere into a pouch of her own. Then she hefted Shiro's spear in her hands and clumsily tossed it to him. Despite her poor throw, he caught it easily, and for an instant he offered her a bright, blinding smile. Then he was gone, vanished beneath the water, just as he always was...only in her world for a moment...for the length of a dream.

XxX

The _Lionheart_ lay at anchor in a small, protected cove off the shores of Altea's coast. The faint rumblings of thunder sounded in the distance, but all parties involved no doubt expected to have their business completed before the storm was upon them.

Well...those who weren't already aware that the telling of this night would go far differently than anyone could've possibly predicted.

From high on the cliffs overlooking the sheltered cove, a different set of eyes would serve as audience to the act playing out below. An intricate circle of power had been carved into the rock and at the center of the interweaving design stood the former princess, Haggar – the Sea Witch.

The ragged garment she wore barely concealed her legs when she stood upon the rocky cliff in her somewhat human form. Waiting patiently, she kept her position within her circle until just the right moment. Then, when the wind whipped violently through her white hair, whistling harshly through every crack in the cliff face, she raised her hands in the air, opening the conduit to draw power into her circle.

"The time has come. Awake... _Naxzela!_ "

XxX

The rise in the wind and the sudden closeness of what had once been distant thunder didn't go unnoticed by the occupants of the _Lionheart_. It unnerved every last person aboard ship, both human and myd, to note the increase in the threatening weather as they watched the transformed Galra warriors climb onto the ship.

Normally, important conferences like this would've taken place in a cabin belowdecks, but as the mermyd delegation could make no such move without great indignity, it had been decided that the negotiation would take place on deck, with each myd positioned in a small net chair hung from the ratlines. Acxa, Shiro, Keith, Lance, and Hunk had all opted to be present as representatives of Arus. Altea was represented by Alfor, Allura, Coran, Samuel, and Pidge.

Having learned a thing or two from Lotor's first encounter with Allura, the Galra had taken to clothing themselves when taking human form. Rudimentary as the garments salvaged from shipwrecks were, they did nothing to help the Galra's monstrous appearance. They all chittered excitedly, eyes flashing as their so-called prince climbed aboard the ship.

"I must say," Lotor began as he heaved himself over the gunwale and onto the deck, "there are a fair few soldiers and spears present for a meeting of truce."

"Your warriors are no less armed," Alfor pointed out. "We will keep the peace so long as you do."

"And you will forgive us if we are not quick to trust one who stands accused of piracy and war crimes," Acxa noted from where she hung suspended above the deck, glaring at the half-blood.

"Do we? That is an accusation I shall enjoy hearing," he said, sneering at them all as the last of the Galra climbed onto the ship.

Zarkon himself.

The master of the Galra cast his gaze slowly about the assemblage, eyes fixing on Shiro longest of all; and no one failed to notice the way Shiro inhaled sharply at the sight of him, struggling to maintain his composure.

"What is it this _rabble_ accuses me of?" the former king grated in a voice like broken shale, glaring at them all in turn.

"Where's my brother, Galra scum!" Pidge came right out, fangs bared and snapping for a fight.

"Katelyn!" her father scolded, half in horror.

"I'm sorry. Your brother?" Lotor asked, raising an eyebrow at the young woman.

"What the girl means to say," Alfor began before Pidge could dig herself in deeper, "is that we have reason to suspect some of your number may have taken one of my subjects captive."

"And if we did? Need I remind you, _Majesty_ , that our two peoples are at war with one another?" Lotor pointed out condescendingly. "All's fair, as they say."

"This would've been _before_ you brought your war to my kingdom," the king continued in a controlled voice. "A little more than a year back. The boy, Matthew Holt, was last seen at the shore. You and yours were known to be near the surface that night."

"So? What does that prove? Your little friends were there, as well. How do you know _they_ didn't take the boy?" Lotor asked, flicking his gaze to Shiro and the others.

"So you admit to being there, then?" Samuel pressed. "Otherwise how could you know who was or was not present?"

"What could we possibly want with a human boy?" the would-be prince asked with a toss of his hair.

"How did you figure out the human transformation?" Pidge demanded before anyone could stop her.

"Hmm?"

"You didn't just learn that overnight. You needed a test subject, someone to- research," she explained, her voice breaking briefly on the word. "You knew where he was going to be, so you took him!"

Lotor laughed at this. "Your anatomy isn't all that difficult, child. Believe me."

"Really? Because I know a certain princess who might just disagree with that statement," Pidge said, her mocking sneer shifting between Lotor and Allura. Lotor glared between the pair for a moment before turning his attention back to Alfor and Samuel.

"This crime we supposedly committed, how is it you would expect the boy to still be alive? After all, it's my understanding you humans don't do so well in water."

"There are dry rooms in Arus. We would have to be fools to believe your kind haven't come up with something similar," the king responded.

"Please!" Samuel begged, taking a step forward into the no-man's land between the two sides. "Restore my son to me! We have Galra prisoners. We can make an exchange-"

"Ridiculous!" Zarkon's voice thundered across the deck as raindrops began to patter down on the ship. "Even if we _had_ this boy you spoke of, these creatures are _nothing!_ Certainly not anything worth trading over," he snapped, a statement which seemed to earn him an openly hostile look from his son. "Besides...you have only ever had one thing we want. _Only_ one thing..." he said, voice trailing off into nothing as he moved in Shiro's direction.

Shiro was almost relieved to be held in one place by the little sling. It left him without the option to pull back from the former king – his father's murderer. He was prevented from revealing his own cowardice, but he was also trapped with no way out.

"You have no right to the position you hold, little Shirogane," Zarkon said as he drew closer. "No right to even _be_ here. You should have _died_ twenty years ago. Couldn't even do that."

"Enough of this!" Alfor started, trying to intervene. His voice was nearly lost in a clap of thunder from overhead.

"Takashi, I asked _so little_ of you," Zarkon snarled as he moved right up against the young captain. "A life for a life. Your _queen's_ life."

"Shiro!" Allura cried out, starting forward.

"No!" Coran moved in to stop her, throwing his arms around her shoulders.

"So what is left _hanging_ before me instead of a worthy captain?" Zarkon taunted, hand moving up to seize Shiro's white hair, forcing his head back and leaving his throat bare. " _Nothing._ Just a coward, a weak _child_ who couldn't protect his own family," the former king hissed low in his ear.

"Shiro!" Keith shouted, beginning to climb from his sling.

"Zarkon, this is _not_ in the spirit of the truce," Alfor snapped at his former friend.

"If you don't release him-"

All of this was happening around Shiro, but he was aware of none of it. He was hyperventilating now, lungs seeking air and gills seeking water, trapped in that infinitesimal space between him and the monster who'd killed his father.

 _Only he_ _ **didn't**_ _...did he?_ _ **You**_ _did that. You failed them._

Zarkon could've killed him then for all he would've noticed. He wasn't present when the former king lifted him from his sling, hands moving to wrap around his throat, cutting off his air. Gazing up at the coming storm with empty eyes, he was lost in the nightmare from the past.

 _"My child..._ **not my child!** _"_

 _ _"__ _ _ **PAPA!**__ _ _"__

 _ _"__ _You're an accomplice now, Takashi Shirogane. Decide."_

 _Blood in the water...cloying on his tongue...taken from his mother's arms...the world vanishing in a flash of violet light..._

 _"Do you want to save them? Or don't you?"_

 _ _My family...__

" _ _Shiro!__ " Keith's scream vaguely broke through the captain's haze of nightmare and oxygen deprivation. The only reason he became aware of the dagger slicing across Zarkon's wrist was the loud shout of pain that pierced his ears. As Shiro dropped to the deck, he caught sight of Keith, halfway up the rope that supported his sling, arm still extended from the throw he'd just executed.

"Well," Lotor started as the rain finally burst from the swollen clouds, "I take it that means the truce is ended. __GALRA!__ " he shouted, calling his warriors to arms. Lightning flashed overhead as the deck erupted in battle.

The next thing Shiro became aware of was Allura kneeling over him. "Shiro? Shiro, are you all right?" she demanded in desperation, briefly raising her sword to slice at the kneecaps of an advancing Galra.

"Allura?" he mumbled in confusion as the ship lurched upon the unnaturally heavy seas.

"Come on. You need to get up. You have to fight," she said as she pressed his spear into his hands. Nearby a human soldier was run through by a Galra spear.

"The rope," he said, bracing the end of the spear against the planking as he started to pull his weight up along the haft. "I need the rope."

"Right," she said with a nod, standing to draw down the rope of Shiro's sling. Within moments, she was helping him heft his weight up along the line, getting himself into a combat ready position. When another Galra attempted to rush Allura from behind, Shiro gored the creature with his spear.

"Thank you," she said, shifting to cover him from behind, neatly removing the knife hand of her latest attacker.

"Always," he returned as he swung out to spear another Galra through the throat.

Nearby, another of the creatures had managed to pull Keith down from his line and the Galra and part-Galra were grappling fiercely on the deck, attempting to cut each other's throats with their daggers. Within moments, Keith's assailant was impaled on another spear. When the dead Galra was pulled back with the receding spear, Keith looked up to see Lance swinging by with a smug smile on his face.

"Dammit! That one was mine!" the half-blood shouted up at his lover.

"Love you, too, sharkface!" Lance sang before swinging out of earshot.

"Guardsman!" Kolivan shouted to Keith as he tossed him his line. It took the young Guard only a moment to climb back up into the ratlines.

Meanwhile, Coran and Hunk were working to heard a group of the Galra warriors into a cluster, coming at them from both above and below. When they'd knotted the group tightly enough together, Samuel and Pidge tossed a net over them, leaving the creatures as easy prey for the surrounding soldiers.

From up in the lines, Shiro caught sight of a Galra and a human soldier grappling at the ship's railing. He swung across to try and help the woman, but wasn't in time to save her, as the next wave to crash against the ship delivered a fresh Galra onto the railing, leaving him the perfect opportunity to cut her throat.

"My king!" Samuel called to Alfor through the roar of the storm and the wrack of the fighting. "This is not a natural storm! The well must have been disturbed! The world cries out in anguish!"

Alfor nodded his understanding, drawing his sword as he moved to confront his former friend.

"What have you done, Zarkon?" the king demanded, pointing his sword forward in accusation as he and the Galra leader began to circle one another.

"No more than I __must__ _,_ old friend," the Galra snarled right back, continuing the circling motion. "Neither you nor Honerva have the __will__ to do what must be done, so it falls to me. I am going to finish what we started! __I'm going to get back what was taken!__ " he shouted before rushing the king, spear ready to impale him.

Alfor easily turned aside the hasty attack, quickly whipping his sword back about in preparation for running the former king through. But Zarkon was ready for the movement. With a tiny flick of his dagger, he twisted the sword's trajectory, leaving both rulers to grapple fiercely between spear and sword.

It continued like this for several rounds before Zarkon managed to get the better of the Altean king, bashing at his head with the haft of his spear. With a small cry of pain, Alfor dropped, body sprawling along the ship's railing. With a cry of victory, Zarkon raised his spear overhead, ready to bring it down on the incapacitated king.

" _ _FATHER!__ " Allura's voice sounded, alerting Shiro to what was happening. As his eyes fixed upon Zarkon, everything seemed to happen in slow motion for him. He saw Alfor lying helplessly on the railing, head bleeding badly from the spear's gash. He saw Zarkon's spear beginning its slow decent toward the king's chest, ready to pierce him through the heart. And he saw Allura throwing herself in front of her father, bringing her sword up in an attempt to block the strike, but not fast enough. As the stabs of lightning overhead illuminated the insanity in the former king's eyes Shiro knew, as sure as the tide, that he couldn't let this madman kill anyone else.

 _ _Not her!__ _ _ **Not her!**__ _ _ **NOT HER!**__

To him, it seemed that he swung the distance between them instantaneously. With an enraged cry Shiro brought his spear up sharply, driving it through Zarkon's body with enough force to break armor and bone. As the force of the strike drove the former king back, Shiro traveled with it, ultimately imbedding the spearhead in the wood of the deck, pinning Zarkon's body to the water-lashed surface with the weight of his own.

"Ho...ner...va," the former king exhaled on his last breath.

For a moment, Shiro couldn't quite figure out what had happened. But then he raised his head, breathing heavily as he looked into the now-dead eyes of his father's killer. Slowly turning his face to the angry heavens, Takashi Shirogane gave a scream to match the fury of the tempest around him.

"Retreat! __Retreat!__ " Lotor's voice sounded somewhere above him. "Fall back! Back to the water!"

Shiro looked up to try and find their enemy, still dazed from the shock of the moment. When his eyes finally picked Lotor out, it was to see him standing at the railing beside Alfor and Allura. The princess was too preoccupied with covering her injured father to notice, but Shiro couldn't __help__ but notice. For a single moment, the would-be prince turned to sneer at him. Then he raised his dagger and drove the handle of it harshly against Allura's temple.

" _ _ALLURA!__ " the anguished scream was ripped from his throat, overpowering the sound of the half-blood's cruel laughter as he let himself fall back into the churning water.

For a moment, Allura just stood there, head bleeding from a wound similar to her father's. Then she weaved on her feet for a moment more before her eyes flickered shut in unconsciousness, her body collapsing and hitting the railing before tumbling over the side, down into the roiling ocean.

The sound that was torn so violently from Shiro's body had never before been heard on land or beneath the waves. It was the sound of abject suffering, of untold agony and terror. For years after, those who had heard it would claim that, for just a moment, the young captain had become one of the monsters from the ancient tales of the deepest seas. But Shiro was unaware of any of that in the horror of the moment. All he knew was that he __had to get to Allura!__

He wasn't aware of the just __how__ he'd dragged himself across the deck and over the side, but before he could comprehend it, it was already done. He was hurtling through the air, diving into the waves, the cold rush of water over his gills bringing a snap of awareness to his unraveling senses. Allura was already far beneath the ship and sinking fast, her silvery hair undone from its bun and swirling through the water like a cloud with trails of her blood.

"Allura! __Allura!__ " he cried out desperately, even though he knew she couldn't hear him. He dove straight for her, pushing his body harder than he ever had before. By the time he reached her, he was alarmed to see her lips open, a few paltry bubbles trailing from them. She'd already inhaled the water. In another few moments, she would be dead.

Seizing the princess' limp form in his arms, he hauled her upward, forcing his body back up through the water with powerful snaps of each sinew in him. When he finally burst back up through the punishing waves, bringing her up to the air, he felt a tiny flicker of relief as she coughed up water. He wasn't too late yet.

" _ _HELP!__ " he shouted as loud as he could, not daring to wave for fear of relinquishing his hold on Allura even a little bit. Only he was soon distressed to realize that no one would be able to hear his cries. The treacherous tides had already carried them far and away from the __Lionheart__ _._ There was no way she'd last the swim back.

Shiro cried out when another wave suddenly seized them and pulled them back under. He had to struggle even harder to regain the surface this time, and when he looked down to the princess clutched so desperately in his arms, he was horrified to note that she didn't cough up the water this time. Even here at the surface, she was drowning. They couldn't stay here. He __had__ to get her out of the water.

Scanning the horizon in each direction, Shiro found they were much closer to the jagged cliffs that usually kept the cove partly protected. There was no protecting against __this__ bad a storm, but it just might be the last hope for his dearest friend. So, fighting to stay on top of the thrashing, foaming waves, Shiro struck out for the cliffs, keeping Allura's head above the water as best he could.

As he moved, the young captain began to pick out a cave mouth amongst the sheer drops of the cliff faces. Under normal conditions, the caves would've been much too high out of the water to reach, but with the waves whipped as high as they were on this night, he would just be able to reach them. And so, timing himself as best he could with the unpredictable tempest, he let a wave carry him up to the cave mouth, fingers just barely managing to grip the rocky ledge before the water retreated.

For a few agonizing moments, he was supporting the full weight of his own body plus Allura's by the power of that one hand alone. Though his muscles strained and cried out in protest, urging him either to let go or just drop the princess, he refused to give in, fighting beyond all exhaustion and self-preservation to heave Allura's body up into the cave.

Allura was safe by the time the next wave hit, but Shiro was still clinging to the stone with fast failing fingers when the wall of water crashed against him, battering his body against the rocky surface. He would've been safe to just let himself drop back into the water and retreat to the calm of the depths, but he also knew that if he abandoned Allura now, she would still die. He __had__ to get back to her.

 _ _If I let go now, I'll never forgive myself!__

So he held on through all the punishment the waves had to give him, held on with fingers he could no longer feel, and by the time the water finally receded, he was able to heave his own body up into the cave.

Not knowing where he found the strength to do so, he dragged them both to the back of the cave, pressing Allura as far back as it was possible to go in order to protect her from any further-reaching waves. His heart was already breaking to acknowledge that she wasn't breathing. Was he too late?

"No...it __can't__ be!" he sobbed as he began to pound furiously against her chest, the water that had been his home all his life suddenly his enemy. If Allura died...if she died...

"Allura...please... _ _please...no!__ " he cried out, continuing his motions with still no response. " _ _Vi ma prinscia__...please...please don't leave me," he begged her, finally allowing the weight of his body to collapse against her in despair. Then he whispered to her the one thing he thought he never would.

" _ _I love you.__ "

All at once, just as the world seemed it was about to end, Shiro heard the blessed sound of his princess coughing, felt her expel the deadly buildup of water onto his shoulder as she raggedly drew air into her lungs.

"Oh, Allura...Allura, thank the gods," he sobbed in her ear. Then, before he'd realized what he was doing, he was kissing her, slow and relieved, just too grateful she was alive to worry about anything else.

"Shi...ro..." she called out faintly, barely alive. The pain in her voice called the merman's attention to the severe wound in her head. Without wasting another moment, he began to thread the strands of his power through the injury, ready to give everything he was to save her life.

But it didn't take the princess long to regain her awareness. At first, all she could really see was Shiro leaning over her. Smiling up at him, she reached a hand up to touch his hair. That was when she began to see the short strands of black turning white – one by one. Gasping in horror, she dug her fingers harshly into his scalp.

"Shiro, don't- please...you can't... _ _stop!__ Don't do this!"

"I have to," he whispered to her. "You'll die if I don't. I __can't__ let you die. I __won't!__ "

"And what do you think happens to me if __you__ die?" she pleaded with him, unable to do more than clutch those precious strands of black hair in desperate fingers.

"It's all right," he half-sobbed, voice breaking as he pressed his forehead against hers. "It's all right." Then, in a tone that was nowhere near the strength and beauty of his normal voice, he began to sing to her.

 _And I'd give up forever to touch you_

 _'Cuz I know that you feel me somehow_

 _You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be_

 _And I don't wanna go home right now_

 _And all I can taste is this moment_

 _And all I can breathe is your light_

 _When sooner or later it's over_

 _I just don't wanna miss you tonight_

 _And I don't want the world to see me_

 _'Cuz I don't think that they'd understand_

 _When everything's made to be broken_

 _I just want you to know who I am_

"Oh, Shiro," she sobbed in heartbreak. "My Shiro."

Then, in a single heartbeat, it really was over.

The next wave to crash against their little sanctuary came up much higher, flooding into the cave and grabbing at Shiro, as if it specifically meant to pull him away from Allura. Before either of them could do anything, the wave swept him away from her, dragging him back out into the storm.

" _ _Shiro!__ " she cried out in desperate horror, her voice the last thing he heard before he was plunged beneath the water. " _ _SHIRO!__ "

He tried to fight the current's pull, but it was too strong. Any young mermyd's first lesson about the open water was how unforgiving its tides would be if it ever caught you and held you in its grasp. Shiro experienced that warning now as his body was slammed against rock and coral, raked against every harsh, unfeeling surface with no relief. Breathe though he could, the enraged ocean was no less dangerous to one small, defenseless mermyd body.

With no escape from the tempest's punishment, no reprieve to be had from the snap of bone and the tear of flesh, Shiro could do nothing but slip into unconsciousness, completely at the mercy of the storm.

"Allura," he whispered, even though he wasn't conscious of doing so. "Allura."

Allura was safe. That was all that mattered.

XxX

Keith was the one to find Shiro.

The storm had rolled over fairly quickly not all that long after Shiro and Allura had vanished beneath the waves and every last one of them was unnerved by how quickly a tempest of that magnitude had blown over. Acxa hadn't been willing to let anyone search until they were certain the storm had passed them by. Things had only become more troublesome when the badly damaged __Lionheart__ had recovered Allura from the cliffs, only for her to tell them that the waves had taken Shiro. That was the pronouncement that had finally pushed the acting queen into allowing Keith, Lance, and Hunk to search for him. The remnants of the delegation from Arus were allowed to transfer their dead and wounded back to the city while the __Lionheart__ limped home to get King Alfor some proper medical attention. Keith would learn later that Allura had nearly protested leaving when she didn't yet know if Shiro was all right, but had finally been convinced of the need to get her father back home, only leaving with a promise from the others that she would know the moment they found Shiro.

Except Keith wasn't sure if Allura would want to see Shiro as he was now. He felt angry, desperate tears stinging behind his eyes as he fought to pull his guardian's body from inside the tiny crevice he'd found him in.

"OVER HERE!" he screamed to the other two as Shiro's body finally came free. He felt the burn of tears even more urgently as he laid his captain down on the sandy bottom, hearing Lance and Hunk both gasp when they came upon them.

At first, he didn't see how Shiro could've possibly survived, his body was so badly broken. Every last piece of armor had been wrenched or shattered from his body. He was bleeding from so many cuts, it was a wonder there was still blood left in him. The only reason sharks hadn't got at him was because the punishing current had shoved him so far into the crevice. He was fairly certain the captain's spine was broken and there was nothing left of his right arm below the shoulder. Part of his tail fin had also been torn completely to ribbons.

"Shiro..." Lance breathed in shock, the sound of tears quivering in his voice. Keith was ready to turn away from the horrible sight, to throw himself into Lance's arms and weep until the world came to an end, but at the very last moment, his eyes caught sight of something – the tiniest flap of Shiro's gills, fighting to pull in water.

"He's alive," Hunk started in amazement as he finned his way down to support the unconscious captain.

"How?" Keith demanded as he swam down to Hunk's side.

"I don't know, but there's no way he'll survive the journey back to Arus," Hunk reported sadly. "Even if he could, none of the healers or sorcerers could do anything. The only one who could is..."

"...is my mother," Lance finished when he couldn't. Queen Honerva couldn't help anyone right now. Not even herself.

"But- but there has to be something we can do!" Keith protested. "We can't just let him die!"

"I...I can _try_ ," Lance said quietly as he drifted down among them. He still didn't have that much experience handling his powers, but if this was the only option...

However, the moment he reached out to Shiro's shattered body with even a small tendril of his power, the captain shrieked in agony, body giving several violent jerks and sending the fresh sounds of several hideous _snaps_ to their ears as even more bones broke. Hunk and Keith moved to hold him down while Lance drifted back in horror.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he whispered over and over again. "I didn't mean to."

Once Shiro had fallen still again, the three young myds were left floating in painful silence, wondering if they truly had no recourse but to watch the merman who had practically raised them all die in agony. Was there _truly_ nothing they could do for him?

Lance was the one to finally offer a solution. Slowly lifting his head up, he looked to his two companions.

"We could...take him to see _her._ "

"Lance," Keith started in shock, "you don't mean...Haggar?"

"That _is_ what I mean."

"The Sea Witch?" Hunk whispered in fear, glancing about as if he thought someone might have heard the prince speak the outcast name. So far as any of them knew, the Sea Witch lived apart from the other Galra, didn't associate herself with them, but that wasn't exactly a comforting notion either way. "That's...there's no way. Lance, it's forbidden!"

"But she could heal him!" Lance argued. "I _know_ she could. If the stories are true, she doesn't live all that far from here."

"And if they aren't?" Hunk pressed.

"Then what have we got to lose? We can deal with the consequences later, but Shiro's going to die right now unless we _do something!_ " the prince argued right back.

"Hunk, _please,_ " Keith jumped right in with him. "We can't just let him die. He's like a big brother to _all_ of us. We owe him more than that. _Please!_ "

For several precious moments, Hunk's gaze shifted, between Shiro and the other two, between Shiro and the dark depths of the ocean beyond them. Somehow he just _knew_ they were going to end up regretting this, but he also knew that Lance and Keith were right. There was no way they could let Shiro die – not when they could do something about it.

"All right," he said with a sigh. "Let's go."

XxX

(A/N) And if you were beginning to wonder exactly _how_ this was a Little Mermaid story, we are now finally coming to the meat of the matter. Hopefully, I don't keep you waiting on the Sea Witch's bargain for too long.

As for the song in this chapter, that would be Mandy Moore's "Only Hope". While Switchfoot also has an excellent male voice version of the song, I feel like Moore's original version better captures the emotion I was going for in that scene. Well, til next we meet, dear readers, adieu.


	7. Like Wounded Soldiers in Need of Healing

(A/N) Oh, good gods. How did I get through the entire month of May without posting anything for my mermaid story? I ought to be smacked! I'm so sorry this latest chapter's been such a long time coming. Star Wars Rebels consumed me body, mind, and soul, so it kinda ran away with me as far as fic writing goes. I'm gonna need to do a better job of juggling these two in future. Hopefully, this chapter was at least marginally worth waiting for, as we finally have our Little Mermaid. I hope you enjoy!

 **And I'd Give Up Forever to Touch You**

 _Chapter 7: Like Wounded Soldiers in Need of Healing_

 _"I love you."_

Allura had been sitting at her father's bedside for hours now, going over the events of the battle and its aftermath in a sort of haze. Her memory up until Lotor had struck her was crystal clear, but it was after falling into the water that things became unclear.

She knew Shiro had rescued her. That much was plain – had become only too clear when she'd woken to him wasting more and more of his life on her. Only...before that, things were a jumbled mess of pain, cold, and drowning.

She distinctly remembered hearing Shiro scream her name. Remembered the feel of his strong, warm arms around her...surety against the cold and the water. She remembered the desperation of his screaming...

 _"I love you."_

Had he truly spoken those words? Had that been real, or had it only been the delusions of her half-gone mind – to hear the words she'd always longed for in her dying moments?

And his lips...the warm, tender feel of his kiss...

Could she really have only imagined that feeling? Or had Shiro acknowledged what was between them...only for her to lose him?

Rising from her chair with a small, frustrated cry, she moved out onto her father's balcony, gazing out at the restless sea with knots in her stomach and a dreadful fear squeezing at her trembling heart.

Was it possible for her to lose her father _and_ Shiro all in the same day?

 _No!_ She couldn't be thinking like that. Colleen had done what she could and her healing skills were great. There should be no doubt that King Alfor would live. Perhaps her fear for Shiro was clouding her judgement?

"Shiro," she whispered in anguish as she pulled the tonesphere he'd given her before from her belt. Normally, she would have found its myriad of colors soothing to behold, but now there was a streak of angry red embedded in those colors – like the vivid crimson of a deep wound. Was it his death she was seeing? She didn't know much about the science of tonespheres. Would his beautiful gift to her be forever marked by the violence of his loss?

"Shiro... _Takashi,_ " she whispered again as she dropped to her knees, clutching the tonesphere in trembling fingers. "Please...your voice is the most beautiful sound in the world to me, but I don't want to hear this song if it means I will never see your face again. _Please...Takashi_...don't make me listen to this now. Come back to me...come back. I love you," she confessed, tears streaming down her face as the words were choked from her throat.

Had she finally given voice to those words, to what she had always known, only for it to be too late for them to matter?

XxX

Despite their need for haste, the going to the Sea Witch's dwelling was slow. Lance needed the time to keep interested sharks away and Hunk and Keith had to be careful in moving Shiro's broken body or they were going to lose him anyway and this would all be for nothing. When they finally reached the rock garden where the witch was said to live, though, _that_ was when things began to get worrisome.

Two tiger sharks had been pursuing them for some time and Lance had barely been able to keep their interest from fixing on the dying captain. It wouldn't be long before he'd exhausted what little strength he had left. He was beyond relieved when they came in sight of the bizarre column-like structures of the rock garden. They were close now.

However, once they'd carried Shiro past the borders of the garden, something unexpected happened.

The two sharks attempted to keep after them, but when _they_ attempted to cross the boundary of the garden, they...couldn't. It was almost as if they'd swum up against a barrier, completely unable to pass it.

"What?" Lance muttered in confusion. Just what was going on here?

The tiger sharks tried for several more minutes before giving the endeavor up as a lost cause and swimming away, leaving the small party staring after them in confused worry. It was nice to have the predators gone, of course, but...what were they coming up against that could deter the ever-present hunger of a _shark?_

"It...I...guess we've got the right place," Hunk said nervously as his gaze shifted toward the interior of the rock garden.

"If this- _is_ the witch's power...she can definitely help Shiro," Keith tried to bolster them, though there was still a clear trace of nerves in his voice.

"But if she can do _this_...shield a large area like this with _just_ the strength of her magic...what else can she do?" Lance was the one to finally ask, the only one of them who could really even _begin_ to understand the implications of this kind of power.

"There's no time," Keith suddenly snapped, starting to lead Hunk into the maze-like structure with Shiro. "We have to get him to her _now._ "

Lance followed close behind them, keeping an eye out for trouble while the other two focused on Shiro, making sure he was still with them as they swam. As they moved through the garden, it felt like they'd been swimming around in it for hours, but it really couldn't have been that long because Shiro was still breathing. How he was still alive was a miracle none of them could fathom. But after who could say how long of chasing their tails about the confusing space, Keith was the one to finally lose his patience.

"We don't have time for this!" he shouted hysterically into the silence of the garden. "Witch! We need your help! _Where are you?!_ "

All at once, the rocks around them began to glow, casting off an eerie purple light as a menacing voice echoed from deep within them, filling the water and seeming to come from everywhere all at once.

"You need my help?" the voice repeated, and if Lance didn't know better, he would say there was a note of amusement to it. "Then tell me, little guardling...what is it you would ask of me?"

"Our friend is dying! They say you have the power to heal him," the young guardsman said, eyes darting around to catch some glimpse of the speaker.

A sinister rumble sounded from the rocks at that, sounding almost like a laugh. "Indeed. Such power is mine to command. But a favor of such magnitude does not come without price."

"We don't care!" Lance joined in, though he was afraid he might regret it later. "We'll do anything to save his life!"

"Anything, you say?" the voice repeated in interest with that same almost laugh. "That is of interest to me. You _may_ regret the decision later, but I will take you at your word. Bring him to me."

With that, the rocks grew to a blindingly bright glow, forcing the young mermyds to shut their eyes. By the time they were able to open them again, their surroundings had changed completely. They appeared to be at the center of the rock garden, and from that center rose a small hill of rock, into which led a cave mouth.

" _Bring him to me,_ " the voice repeated, taking on more of a hissing quality. "Bring the child to me."

"Guys, I- I'm really not sure if this is a good idea," Hunk tried to dissuade the other two, involuntarily moving back from the cave mouth.

"We've come this far, Hunk," Lance argued.

"We _can't_ turn back now," Keith snapped. When Lance moved in to help him support Shiro, they swam into the cave without hesitation.

"You guys," Hunk kept trying to plead as he swam in after them, "don't forget. The Sea Witch killed Shiro's mother. She tried to kill _him._ Who's to say she won't try the same thing again? What _reason_ does she have to save his life?"

"Maybe no reason. Maybe every reason," Lance answered as they moved through the deepening shadows of the cave.

"What does _that_ mean?" Hunk pressed.

"It means we don't have _time_ to question her motives," Keith snapped. "We're out of options. If she wanted him dead, she could've just left us out there. She didn't. We've at least got a chance here. And if she tries anything, she's gonna have to go through _us._ "

Hunk groaned as he kept after them, muttering under his breath, "Yeah, sure, antagonize the scary witch who has the power to ward off apex predators with her little finger. Lemme know how that works out for you." Still, Hunk couldn't entirely deny that Keith had a point. If she wanted Shiro dead, it would've been easy enough for her to let them wander the rock garden until he died. But if she did want him alive, then it was for a reason, and they didn't exactly have time to question that reason. So Hunk fell silent as they moved down through the levels of the cave, down until they reached a large, compartmented chamber that was lit by the ominous red light from several cracks in whatever vent the cave was situated over.

The Sea Witch herself waited for them at the far end of the chamber, wreathed in the tattered remnants of some sort of ceremonial robe. For a moment, Lance found himself thinking there was something familiar in her appearance, but he quickly forced himself to drop the thought. There wasn't time for it.

"Okay, we've brought him," Keith started, eyeing the Galra witch with suspicion. "Will you help us or not?"

"Bring him here," the witch said in an even tone, patting a raised stone that seemed to be serving as some sort of table. Keith and Lance hesitated only a moment before bringing the captain forward, laying him out on the stone.

When Shiro was out of their hands, his body seemed to almost behave as if it were on dry land instead of under water. He didn't drift even a centimeter from the stone surface while Haggar examined him, simply lay upon it as still as if he were already dead. When the witch looked up from him, her expression was unreadable.

"Well?" Keith pressed.

"Can you do anything?" Lance asked.

"Of course. I have the power to heal what has been hurt, but as I said to you before, this is a matter of equivalent exchange. The price of a life is high indeed," she said, her yellow eyes flashing at them in the dimly-lit chamber.

"What do you want from us?" Keith pressed in desperation, his fingers curling into fists. "Whatever it is, we'll give it to you. Just name your price."

The Galra witch laughed as she surveyed the young guardsman. "Ah, little boy. A mildly difficult childhood and you _think_ you know something about what it means to _pay._ The price of power is not so simple a thing as an exchange of money. I could ask you for a piece of your soul or every memory you have of this child in exchange for his life. What then, guardling? Would you still pay that price?"

For a moment, Keith looked stricken by her words. None of them had really considered prices like that. But, ultimately, he squeezed his eyes shut and nodded. "If that's what it would take to save his life, then yes. I would do it."

"Good," the witch said softly as she began to swim back and forth before them, keeping herself between them and Shiro. "Then I _may_ be able to deal with you."

"So...what do you want?" Hunk pressed. "What price are you asking for?"

"My price for the child's life...is the life he _might_ have had," the witch began as she drifted back toward Shiro.

"What- what does that mean?" Lance asked.

"That," Haggar started as she laid her hands on both sides of Shiro's head, "shall be between the Shirogane and myself."

XxX

 _Tired._

 _So tired._

 _All he wants to do is rest. He feels like he's been swimming for eons, with pieces of himself falling away until only his beating heart remains, somehow tethering him to consciousness_ – _to awareness._

 _What will it take to just be able to sleep?_

 _"Your_ _ **soul**_ _is the key."_

 _He knows that voice. It's a voice he hears in his nightmares. He'd do almost_ _ **anything**_ _to get away from it. Only now it's that voice tethering him to reality. When the witch's voice finally snaps him back to full awareness, it's with a painful gasp of breath. Whether that breath is air or water, he can't say._

 _Slowly looking around, he finds himself floating above the vast mirror of an endless sea, and overhead an even more endless field of stars, whirling by in their eternal dance. All around, he hears snatches of voices and singing and music. Some he recognizes, most he doesn't._

 _"I love you..."_

 _"How could you do this to him?"_

 _"True and faithful child..."_

 _"Believe me, if there were any other way..."_

 _"My child..._ _ **not my child!**_ _"_

 _"If you save me...she will lose you. She could not bear it..."_

 _"You found me..."_

 _"Give me the child..."_

 _"An empty vessel..."_

 _"Tell me what you cherish most..."_

 _"...as long as you live, their world is in danger..."_

 _"My decision doesn't concern you..."_

 _"No...you_ _ **mustn't**_ _..."_

 _"Savior..._ _ **and executioner!**_ _"_

 _"...peace can only take root in soil made wet with_ _ **your**_ _blood..."_

 _"Is_ _ **this**_ _ **your captain?!**_ _"_

 _"My destiny was set at birth...If you insist on trying to stop me..."_

 _"Takashi Shirogane is dead..."_

 _"Every moment you withhold yourself from me, more people will die..."_

 _"..._ _ **so thou, o martyred one**_ _..."_

 _"I knew not what I did..."_

 _"It's going to be all right..."_

 _"So you've come to me at last."_

 _This latest voice is not part of the cacophony. Whirling around, he finally comes face to face with the Sea Witch. Only in this place, her eyes are not the eerie yellow of the Galra. Here, they are the dark, studious, intent eyes he remembers from twenty years ago._

 _"Haggar," he growls, reaching for a weapon that isn't there._

 _"Enough. You don't need to fear me, child," she says, holding up a placating hand. "I understand now that the way forward can only be created by your_ _ **choice,**_ _not by my own will._ _ **That**_ _is why we failed before."_

 _"What...what do you mean?" he asks, gaze following her movements as she begins to circle around him._

 _"One so young, though innocent enough for the needs of the ritual, is not truly capable of_ _ **choosing**_ _his own fate. So I will help you to make that choice."_

 _"I don't- what- what are you_ _ **talking**_ _about. Where_ _ **are**_ _we?" he demands, still not letting the witch out of his sight._

 _"This is a plane of the astral, a place that is both above and below our own physical reality. It gives birth to the realm we know and that realm blossoms into it, each endlessly creating the other."_

 _"All right," he continues, not truly satisfied with the answer, but knowing he won't get anything else from her. "_ _ **Why**_ _are we here?"_

 _"You were dying, Takashi. You saved your precious princess, but the price of that was to be taken into the storm's mad embrace. Your friends brought you to me to save your life."_

 _"And- why would you do that?"_

 _"As I said, you don't need to fear me. I would raise no hand against you. I cannot have you die now. But a price must still be paid in exchange for your life."_

 _"What sort of price?" he asks suspiciously._

 _"A life for a life. That is the way of the deeper powers. Honerva has only been able to bring you back from death as many times as she has because she_ _ **owes**_ _you her life," the witch explains._

 _"A life...you didn't take one of the others, did you?" he whispers in fear, briefly feeling his insides sink._

 _"No. The price I deemed fit in exchange for your life is the life you_ _ **might**_ _have had."_

 _"What does that mean?"_

 _"It means that your life would be mine to do with as I see fit."_

 _The young captain gives a pained laugh at this. "What was that you said about raising no hand against me?"_

 _At this, Haggar finally comes to a stop, glancing at him sideways when he catches up with her. "You misunderstand me, Shirogane. I would rather you had something you felt was truly worth having."_

 _He has no idea what to say to that. His whole life, this_ _ **creature**_ _has been the manipulator in the shadows_ – _the ugly voice at the back of his mind whispering every poisonous thing he's ever thought about himself. Suddenly she wants nothing but good for him? It doesn't make any sense._

 _"What?"_

 _"Tell me what you cherish most," the witch hisses, her eyes briefly glowing yellow again. "Then we will see just how much you are willing to give up."_

 _"Willing to-"_

 _Before he can finish, Haggar reaches across to touch his forehead, and memories immediately begin to play across the infinite form and color of the astral plane._

 _His mother...helping him record on a tonesphere for the first time..._

 _"Someday, my little starfish. Someday you will have the most beautiful voice on land or sea."_

 _His father...showing him how to hold a toy spear..._

 _"It isn't just a toy, my son. Someday it will be a tool. You must learn to use it."_

 _Allura...smiling down at him for the first time..._

 _"You don't need to take care of anyone else right now. You need to save your strength so you can get better."_

 _Little Matt...wailing pitifully in his mother's arms..._

 _"What...what's wrong? Why are you crying?"_

 _The first time he ever saw Lance...so small and helpless...cradled against the queen's breast..._

 _"I'm sorry. I had to. I'm supposed to protect him."_

 _The joy in Pidge's face the first time he'd launched her into the air..._

 _Rax and Shay...lost in their own little world as they played hide-and-seek..._

 _Hunk's pleading face, begging for just one more box of coral cakes..._

 _The tears flowing from Keith's eyes on the day of his eighth birthday..._

 _"Thank you! Th- thanks- all of you. This...it's- the best birthday...anyone ever had."_

 _Allura..._

 _Her smile..._

 _Her laugh..._

 _Her courage..._

 _Her strength..._

 _The matchless beauty of her eyes on the night he'd realized he was in love with her..._

 _ **Vi ma prinscia...**_

 _"_ _ **I love you.**_ _"_

 _"Just as I thought," the witch says as she pulls back from him, leaving him burning with the memory of Allura's lips against his. "The Altean princess."_

 _"Why does that matter?" he asks as he turns away from her. "Even if she is- what I cherish most...even if she_ _ **could**_ _love me...we could never really_ _ **be**_ _together."_

 _"And you are certain of that?" she calls after him. "After all, the power of the Galra is the power to affect_ _ **change.**_ _"_

 _Slowly, the young captain turns back to her, fearing to ask, but unable to help himself. "Can...can you_ _ **do**_ _that?"_

 _"Yes. How is it you think the Galra can change their form? With my own magic, such a feat is well within the scope of my abilities."_

 _For a moment, he has no idea what to think. It's possible? It's not just some foolish dream? There's a way for him to actually_ _ **be**_ _with Allura? But before he can allow himself to dwell too deeply on the idea, his own doubts begin to creep back in._

 _"She could have anyone...anyone she wanted. Why would she choose_ _ **me?**_ _"_

 _"You will have grown blind indeed, Takashi Shirogane, if you believe for an instant that your feelings are not returned. Have you not_ _ **proven**_ _your devotion to each other many times these long twenty years?"_

 _Yes, but it's always been with the assumption that there's a line they cannot cross_ – _that they are divided by too broad a river. Is that river...not as wide as he thinks?_

 _"Why would you offer something like this?" he asks in both longing and despair. "It's not a payment. It's a reward."_

 _"The payment is that I want you to consider...to_ _ **know**_ _...all that might be lost if the wrong choice is made."_

 _"Wrong choice? What-"_

 _"That and this is also a sort of giving up the life you might have had," she interrupts him. "After all, when you become human, you will give up everything you are among your own people."_

 _To this, he gives a small, bitter laugh. "When? Sort of sounds like I don't have a choice in the matter."_

 _"You don't, really. It_ _ **is**_ _a price, after all, not a reward," she reminded him._

 _"Then what happens if_ _ **I**_ _say no?" he presses. "If I say I would_ _ **rather**_ _die than force myself on Allura like that?" Despite what the witch says, what_ _ **anyone**_ _says, there is still a fairly large part of his heart that doesn't believe the princess could love him._

 _The witch gives a tiny, cruel laugh in response to his words. "Believe me, child, you would say no such thing if you understood what your death really meant."_

 _"Then what does it mean?" he demands._

 _"So many questions. I offer you the_ _ **one thing**_ _you want above all else and still you hesitate to reach out and_ _ **take**_ _that wish."_

 _"Because I don't trust you, Haggar. I would have to be some kind of_ _ **fool**_ _to trust you after what you've done. If you want me to go along with this, then at least explain to me what it is you're after."_

 _At this, the former princess sighs, long and painful. For a moment, her shoulders slump, almost as if in defeat. "That is something I cannot do...Takashi Shirogane. You are not capable of understanding it yet. That is why I offer you this trade. I will give you your life...a life with your princess...if you will only give me a chance to explain at the end. If it will, perhaps, help you to think of me as the villain in this piece, I can offer you an ultimatum."_

 _The young captain shifts to eye the witch out of the corner of his eye. "I'm listening."_

 _"The princess. If you can win her hand in marriage, I will consider the debt paid and we will say nothing more. But if she marries another, we revert to the original plan and you return to me. There is one other thing I must warn you of, though."_

 _"What thing?"_

 _"Magic or no, your body would still be taking on a shape it wasn't meant to bear. There would be...consequences for that."_

 _"How so?"_

 _"Your feet, for one. Though in another form, they would still be the tattered remnants of your tail. That wound can never heal. Not really. It will hurt terribly when you walk. Every step will feel like walking on sharp knives."_

 _"Oh. Is that all?" he asks with a tired shrug. "Pain is nothing to me, Haggar. I'm sure you know that by now. And...if I were with Allura, it- it wouldn't matter. I'm ready for that."_

 _"I thought as much, but there is one thing more I must warn you of. The other significant change would be the loss of your gills. In your true form, you would be without breath. A creature that cannot breathe cannot speak or sing. That is the other thing you would give up in order to go on land as the humans do_ – _your voice. Are you prepared for even that, little Shirogane?"_

 _That one gives the young merman a little more pause. He's never_ _ **really**_ _been a big talker, but the notion of being unable to sing_ – _unable to express his love in the way he normally does_ – _that sits heavily in his chest like a cold, hardened stone. But...if it means being with Allura...does it really matter if he can't sing to her?_

 _Ultimately, he nods, sighing as he covers his face with a single hand. "Yes. I'm prepared for that. I don't understand, not really, but I'm probably already dead anyway. Let it be as you say."_

 _Haggar gives him a thin smile, lips curling in a strange sort of delight. "Then we shall begin."_

XxX

"The decision is made," Haggar announced as she looked up from Shiro.

"Made? What made?" Hunk asked.

"What does that mean?" Keith pressed.

"It means that the child will go forth and attempt to win a life for himself apart from his own kind. He will walk among the Alteans as one of them."

"The life he might've had," Lance whispered in pained shock as the revelation washed through him. "His life with _us._ "

In order to save Shiro, they would have to give him up.

For several moments, all the three young myds could do was glance at each other in horrified sorrow. It hadn't been their intention – to save their guardian only to lose him – but if he was still alive, wasn't it worth it?

"If he...becomes human...then he and Allura can be together," Keith was the one to finally point out, even though he was blinking away tears. "Don't they deserve that?"

Lance nodded, swallowing as he looked back to the witch. "Shiro brought _us_ together," he said, reaching for Keith's hand. "Not doing everything we could to help _them_ would be a pretty poor way to repay him."

Keith nodded in turn, returning Lance's grip with a shuddering breath. "All right," he said to the witch.

Haggar surveyed them for a long moment, tracing her hands along the sides of Shiro's face before speaking again.

"It is more fitting, is it not? That the price for his life should be _yours_ to pay, as it is _your_ wish that he live and not his own."

"That's the payment then?" Hunk asked. "To live apart?"

"In a way. There are more... _specific_ tenets we two agreed to, but that is neither here nor there so far as the three of you are concerned," she said, a dagger suddenly appearing in her hand. Before any of them could say anything, she'd slashed the ancient blade across the palm of her hand, sending a cloud of dark red blood billowing out into the water. Breathing in and out several times, she unerringly drew the stream of blood from the water, guiding it down and into Shiro's mouth – over his gills. Then the witch began to speak again, intoning in a trance-like state.

"Thy Mother's cheeks are moistened. As tears fall from mine eye, so thou, oh martyred one, shall take thine own starlit hair and wipe them dry."

At her words, Lance felt yet another startling shock of familiarity. Those words...he'd heard them before. But _where?_

He was quickly drawn away from his unsettling thoughts by the strength of Keith's grip on his hand. When he focused in on what was happening it was to see that Haggar had laid her hands on the stone surface on either side of Shiro's head, and as she repeated her refrain over and over again, all of the light in the chamber seemed to focus itself upon the broken merman. As the stone table started to reflect the menacing red glow, Shiro began to scream in pain.

" _Shiro!_ " Keith cried out, starting to move forward, but Lance held him back, much as he wanted to do the exact same thing. They _had_ to let this happen.

As they watched the witch's power move through his body, Shiro began to change, beyond the healing of his injuries. The webbing between the fingers of his one remaining hand receded until it was a simple human hand. The beautiful scales on his tail sloughed off and the skin beneath shifted in color until it matched the tone of his torso. Then, all at once, his tail split from belly to fin, each half transforming into a perfectly formed human leg. And all the while, the young captain continued to scream in horrific agony.

"Shiro..." Lance whispered as tears came to his eyes. He wanted to look away, to shut out the awful sight, but he didn't dare. To turn away from his guardian's suffering, it...it would be a betrayal.

The screaming didn't stop until, at the very last, the delicate gill slits at Shiro's neck ceased their desperate fluttering and began to smooth over before finally fading away entirely. But the moment the screaming stopped was almost worse, because it was also the moment Shiro's eyes shot open and his remaining fingers darted to his neck, scrabbling at the smooth skin in desperation. Almost immediately, he began to choke, his human lungs filled with water.

"He's drowning!" Hunk cried out, starting forward to try and step in, but Haggar easily flung him back with a wave of her hand.

"Really?" she asked with a small curl of her lip. "I hadn't noticed."

"Do you plan to _do_ something about it?!" Keith snarled.

Focusing back in on the drowning former mermyd, the witch chanted out another incantation none of them could make out. All at once, Shiro's struggling ceased. He fell still on the stone table, eyes flickering closed as his chest heaved with every breath. So far as they could see, though, nothing was actually different.

"What- what did you do?" Lance asked her.

"I surrounded him with a layer of aether. It's the same element that makes up the atmosphere of the Betwixt. It's a very tenuous layer, though, so I would not dally in getting him to the surface," she warned them.

"No need to tell us twice," Hunk spoke for them as the three myds converged on their guardian.

"Shiro, are you all right?" Keith asked anxiously as he helped the older myd sit up. Shiro opened his mouth to speak, only to stop short when no sound came from his lips. Slowly, he reached his only hand up to his neck, fingers tracing over the places where his gills had been as a look of surprised but pained acceptance moved across his face.

"Shiro, what...what's wrong?" Lance asked him.

"That is one of our specifics," Haggar explained. "It could not be avoided. Because his body has been forced into an unnatural shape by my power, he loses the ability to speak."

" _What?_ " Keith demanded in outrage. "He- it's...Shiro? Did you know about this?" the younger guardsman asked his mentor.

Shiro's only response was a small, sad nod, but then he smiled up at Keith, trying to tell him it was all right.

"He was aware. He agreed to the terms beforehand," Haggar said.

"Terms?" Hunk pressed suspiciously. "Were there any other _terms_ that had to be agreed to?"

"Yes. All of which he _did_ agree to."

"Anything maybe _we_ ought to know about?" Lance jumped back in.

"Only two things, I suppose. Another effect of this transformation is that the wounds done to his true form can never truly heal. He will feel the pain of his split fins with every step."

"Shiro..." Keith mumbled in shock as he looked down at the former mermyd, who only continued to smile for them, trying to reassure them everything was all right. "But we- we wanted to _help_ you, not cause you more pain."

Shiro shook his head, reaching out for Keith's hand with his own. Giving it a brief squeeze, he drew Keith's hand to his heart, trying to explain with nothing more than the gesture and his gaze that _this_ was his heart's desire. He would endure _anything_ for it. And of course they all _knew_ that of him, but it was still difficult to watch him so willingly take such pain onto himself.

"And?" Hunk was the one to keep pressing.

"And what?"

"You said there were _two_ things. What was the second thing?"

"A simple stipulation to consider the debt truly paid. Princess Allura."

"What about her?" Lance asked when she didn't immediately continue.

"If he can win her hand, then the debt is paid. The life he might have had would well and truly be gone."

"And...if he doesn't?" Keith asked.

"Then he belongs to me," she finished with an air of painful finality.

"What?" Keith started in again. " _Why?_ "

"Every one of you agreed to it from the first. The life I saved belongs to me, and _that_ is my choice. One way or the other, the debt to me _will_ be satisfied."

"If you-" Lance started.

"Guys! Guys! It doesn't matter!" Hunk insisted. "I don't get why she'd even stick that in there. Shiro's _already_ won Allura. Way I hear it told, he won her the first time they _met_ , before we were even born. They're gonna be married in like a week, if we can even keep them away from each other that long. But we really do need to get him to the surface _now,_ " he reminded his two companions.

"You're right," Keith conceded with a nod. "Shiro, can you swim?"

Shiro nodded, but the affirmative was quickly proven false when he actually attempted to move from the table. He could still move his body in the streamlined, gliding motion of a mermyd, but when it came to his new legs, he suddenly had no idea what to do with them, lashing them around like two inelegant eels in shallow water.

"Okay, that's a no," Keith said with a half chuckle, moving in under Shiro's left shoulder to support him. Lance quickly moved in on the other side, beneath the stump of his right arm. But before they could leave, Haggar offered up one last stipulation.

"Obviously you won't be telling anyone in Arus about what happened here. I can't imagine they would take it well should it become known that the lot of you consulted with an _Exile_. But one other thing you _must not do_ is tell the princess of the part of the exchange concerning her."

"Why not?" Hunk asked.

"Well, because then the entire arrangement would be null and void. Your Takashi would belong to me anyway. I'm sure you don't want that."

"Well, you're not _wrong,_ but if you...you...y-" Lance began, his voice suddenly trailing off into nothingness as he realized exactly why it was Haggar had looked familiar to him at the start.

It was her tail.

The pattern of a mermyd's scales was completely unique to that myd alone. It was impossible for any two myds to share the same pattern. The only possible exception was with twin children. They'd all seen it before in Rax and Shay, and now Lance was seeing it on Haggar. Despite her decrepit appearance and the fact that her tail was an eel's tail, Lance could still recognize the pattern of color upon it that he'd seen nearly every day for as long as he could remember.

It was the same pattern as his mother's tail.

" _You,_ " he whispered in shock as he looked at the Sea Witch with new eyes.

"I _what_ , Lance Malain...son of Honerva Malain and Blaytz Naloqod...child born of _hope?_ " the witch snarled at him, biting his full title out like a foul curse.

"You're...her sister..." was all he could manage to get out. He wasn't going to allow himself to finish the thought. That was too much for his already overwrought mind to handle.

"Yes. I am. I recognize your name as my nephew, princeling. Now recognize _mine._ "

"Haggar Malain," he said without thought. "Daughter of Benir and Alness Malain..."

"Lance, _don't!_ " Keith snapped at him. "It's forbidden. You _can't_ give her name back to her. If you do-"

"I know," Lance choked out, slowly starting to remaster himself. Besides, he couldn't give this fallen princess back her name even if he'd wanted to. He didn't know it – had _never_ known it.

"Come on. Let's go," Hunk said, pushing the other two myds along with their burden. "We have to get out of here _now!_ "

" _DEVOTION!_ " the Sea Witch shrieked after them as they fled her grotto. " _Child born of devotion!_ That was the name they gave to me! Just you wait, you foolish babes! Live just a little longer, and you will see what _hell_ devotion buys you!"

They didn't look back. They swam until they were well clear of the rock garden, pressing onward and upward, until the ocean around them finally began to lighten. Shiro tried to help out with the occasional clumsy kick, but he really just had no idea what he was doing with the strange limbs, so he allowed Lance and Keith to haul him like so much useless weight. It was when they were only about nine meters below the surface that he began to feel his little protective layer of aether starting to fail.

 _Come on. Come on! Just a little further. We're almost there!_ he tried to coax himself through, gripping Lance and Keith a little tighter to let them know what was happening.

Haggar's spell hadn't really allowed him to expel the water from his lungs. It had simply made it possible for him to breathe with it there. If they couldn't get above water fast enough, well...he supposed he would die before he could make a fool of himself on these new legs.

 _Six meters._

He could feel the cold of the ocean creeping in on him as he never had when he was a mermyd. He was beginning to feel the burn of the water inside him. The spell was almost gone.

 _Three meters._

"Come on, Shiro," Keith urged as they shot toward the surface. "Just a little bit farther."

He could see it just above them, that thin layer that separated the sky from the sea. But he was out of time. The burn was unbearable now. He was drowning.

"Come on!" Lance growled. "Come _on!_ "

Then, just as darkness was beginning to dot across his vision, the two young myds made the final surge upward, delivering Shiro into the air and the light. It was only the instinct of years that allowed Shiro to immediately cough up the water in his lungs, feeling it burn on the way out much worse than he ever had as a myd.

Once he was properly breathing air, though, he was so exhausted he nearly sank right back down.

"Hey, hey, hey. None of that," Keith chastised while helping Shiro "limp" to the shore. Worn out and unused to the human limbs, he was barely able to crawl up on the sand, still struggling to get in enough air. By the time he'd dragged himself to the relative safety of one of the shoreline's small, protected tide pools, he was exhausted enough to just curl up and doze lightly.

"Guys," Hunk started as the three myds watched their guardian sleep from a distance, "I don't- think we can tell anybody else he's alive."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Lance asked.

"Think about it. If we can't tell them what happened with the witch, how would we explain why he's alive and not back in Arus? For now...at least...I think he's going to have to be dead to our people."

Both Keith and Lance sighed in quiet despair, but they knew their friend was right. With Acxa's grip on the throne tenuous at best, it would be up to the Council to decide what Shiro's fate would be if it should become known exactly _how_ his life had been saved. Despite his years of faithful service, not everyone on the Council was fond of the way Honerva had protected the young captain. No doubt they would use going to an Outcast for help against him, even if he hadn't been the one to make the decision.

"Shay and Rax," Lance argued. "We have to tell them, at least."

Hunk nodded. "Right. But it stops there."

"There is someone up _here_ we can tell, though," Keith said as he smiled over at Lance, the expression a disjointed mix of his sorrow at having to leave Shiro behind, his relief he was alive, and the joy they were all feeling at the reunion they all knew they were about to witness. Lance returned the smile, pressing a kiss between Keith's eyes before nodding.

"You're right. I'll get on that."

XxX

Allura was half asleep in her chair when she faintly heard the sound of Lance's voice deep in her mind, calling out to her.

 _Allura...Allura? Can you...me? Allura?_

"Lance?" she called aloud, still half-dreaming.

 _Allura...can you hear me?_

"I hear you!" she said with a start as she snapped to full wakefulness, sitting up straight in the chair. "What's happened? Did you-"

 _We found him._

XxX

Shiro noticed that the sun was a little bit lower in the sky by the time he blinked himself awake. It took him a moment to remember exactly _why_ he would be sleeping beneath the sun, but when he did, he sat bolt upright, gaze darting around anxiously.

Keith, Lance, and Hunk had pulled themselves up onto the beach and were talking quietly amongst themselves, but when they noticed he was awake they quickly refocused their attention.

"Hey, Shiro. Doing all right?" Hunk asked him. He gave them a nod, but then proceeded to shift his gaze between them and the sun several times. Lance was the one to finally catch his meaning.

"Don't worry. You haven't been out all that long. Half an hour maybe. We're a little further down the coast than we usually come up."

"We couldn't exactly afford to be choosey at the time," Keith said with a shrug.

"So...I get that you can't _answer_ answer us, but...what's it _like?_ " Hunk was the one to ask, nodding down at his legs.

Shiro shrugged helplessly as he looked down at the new limbs. He supposed he was suffering some strange sort of disconnect, because he still couldn't quite get his head around the fact that the legs were a part of _his body_ now. The knees bent at his will, the ankles rotated, and the toes curled, but he still felt like a stranger in his own body. He'd hardly had time to adjust to the loss of his right arm. Now he was expected to cope with an almost completely different body? Then there was the unsettling stillness at his neck – in the place where his gills had been. Even when air-breathing, the gills had fluttered involuntarily, a constant reminder of the need for movement. As in all things, stillness was death to a mermyd. He wasn't sure if he would ever adjust to the lack of motion there.

Then there was the small matter of the new appendage _between_ his strange new legs.

Logically, he knew _what_ it was. He understood human anatomy well enough to know that it was still his cock, but it was so bizarre to see the naked, helpless thing just dangling there, completely unprotected. Honestly, how did human men cope?

Well, one thing he would give the little appendage – it was _very_ sensitive. Though it was smaller than his own cock, it seemed to carry a great deal more sensation. A single brush with his hand was enough to send a jolt of sensation through his body. He might have to explore that more later on. But that thought was quickly brushed aside in favor of further exploration. He ran his hand down the thigh of one leg, feeling the unfamiliar musculature beneath the thin human skin. He tested the muscle all the way down the meat of the thigh, onto the strange bone of the knee, then the muscle of the lower leg, drawing the full limb closer to his face until he could get a proper look at the foot attached to the end of it.

For the life of him, he could figure out what the purpose of the toes was. They were neither long nor strong enough to grip things like normal fingers and he didn't understand what function they served in walking. So why were they there? Some kind of aesthetic match for hands and fingers? It hardly seemed like it would matter, since most humans seemed to keep their feet covered all the time. Whatever the case was, he had toes now and he was going to have to deal with it.

Faintly, he found himself recalling Haggar's words about walking, remembering her stipulation as if from a dream – that it would hurt him terribly to walk on these new feet. He didn't feel anything now, but he supposed he would have to face that new reality when the time came, and some small part of him was a little frightened by the notion. Hopefully, this was all going to be worth it in the end – living when he should've died.

" _Shiro!_ "

The sound of Allura's worried voice instantly drew the former mermyd out of his internal musings. He looked up to see Allura and Pidge hurrying toward them down the beach. Pidge just looked worried, but the princess looked absolutely frantic. Shiro threw a worried glance of his own at the younger mermyds, trying to ask what all he'd missed.

"What? She wanted to know when we found you," Lance said with a shrug.

"Do you really think she wasn't scared half to death when you got washed out of the cave like that?" Keith pointed out.

Even if he could've spoken, Shiro wouldn't have really been able to argue that point. Swallowing nervously, he turned back to watch the two women approach. He couldn't guess what all the others had told them, but it seemed like it was enough to prevent the two humans from looking at him strangely as they hurried over. He didn't know if he was seeing it right, but Allura's worry and fear seemed to be compounded with a look of determination. Were those _tears_ he was seeing? Or was the human eyesight really just that poor?

"Shiro, you...you stupid- you _idiot!_ " she shouted when they finally came in close, and indeed, she _was_ crying. But of all the things Shiro had expected to happen upon this first meeting, the absolute _last_ thing he'd expected was for Allura to throw herself down on him, fling her arms around him, and plant her lips firmly on his. He really hadn't expected that at _all_ , if he were honest.

And yet that was exactly what happened.

"Well...that didn't take long," Keith commented.

If any of the others said anything, Shiro didn't hear it. He was a little too intent on the feel of the beautiful princess' lips against his own, the feel of her arms wrapped so tightly around him, the intimate press of their bodies against one another. He had dreamed of a moment like this for so long, and to have it so suddenly was nothing less than earth-shattering. Unfortunately, he didn't have very long to enjoy it before Allura was pulling back from him, pounding a half-hearted fist against his sturdy chest over and over again.

"You _fool!_ " she cried out, her voice a touch higher than normal as she tried to rein in her tears. "Did you honestly think you could just _die_ on me like that? Were you really going to leave me like that? With nothing more than a kiss and one 'I love you'? Where do you get off even _thinking_ such ridiculous thoughts? Bloody fool," she whimpered as she collapsed against his chest. "You were _always_ such a _fool!_ "

"Shh, sh, sh," he soothed her, one of the few sounds he was still capable of making. Gently stroking her hair for a moment, he gradually coaxed her into looking back up at him, offering her the brightest smile he had in him. Then he pressed a brief but tender kiss to her lips before pulling back, mouthing the words 'I love you' as he raised his hand to cup her cheek, using his thumb to gently wipe away some of her tears.

But it didn't seem to matter how quickly he wiped them away, because several more streamed from her eyes. "Oh, Shiro," she whispered, turning her head to the side to press a kiss to the palm of his hand. Bringing up her own hands, she held his one close against her face, cherishing the solid reality of it. "I was so afraid I'd lost you. I love you. _I love you._ I love you so. Please...don't leave me again," she begged, resting her head against his chest. Nodding, he sealed that promise to her with a kiss to the top of her head. He _could_ stay with her now. If that was really what she wanted, that future was almost in their grasp. He _never_ had to leave her again.

But Allura's position against his chest placed her at a perfect height to see the stump that was his right arm. Reaching out a hand to touch the end of it, she gave a shuddering sigh.

"They told me- what happened to you. What you must've been through...my Takashi...I'm so sorry."

Shiro shook his head, drawing her gaze back up to him. It didn't matter. None of that mattered now because they were together. He would've endured this and worse just to arrive at this moment.

Shiro himself hadn't really been aware of it until then, as it wasn't a norm he'd ever had to deal with, but the talk of his injuries and what he'd been through did seem to cause Allura to remember that he wasn't a mermyd anymore – and that she was sitting on top of him pressed very firmly against his _perfectly_ naked body.

"Oh! I- I'm sorry," she stammered out, trying to disentangle herself from him, but when Shiro tried to hold her there, they just wound up in an awkward tangle of limbs half in and half out of the tide pool. Pidge and the other myds all had a good laugh at this as the two blushingly extricated themselves from each other, Allura mumbling apology after apology. Pidge finally took pity on them and brought out the cloak she'd brought down for Shiro.

"Yeah, we really don't want this godly specimen of a perfect human man to cause a riot when we bring him up to the castle. The maids and the valets are gonna be throwing themselves at him as it is," the girl said with several small snickers.

"Let them try," Allura said primly. "I shall be forced to remind them why _I_ am the greatest swordmaster in the land after my father."

"That I might like to see," Keith said with a small laugh. "Pidge, you're going to write everything down, right?"

"Keith, my good sir, I won't miss a second of this," she assured him with a smirk.

"We should probably be heading back, though," Hunk pointed out sadly. "The others are going to be wondering what happened."

"Of course. Shiro, are you able to walk?" Allura asked him, to which he shrugged. Again, on the level of logic, he understood how walking worked, but that didn't mean he knew the first thing about it. Allura returned with an understanding nod. "All right then. Just watch me and do as I do," she instructed, shifting her body so that her weight was borne on her knees.

The movement was easy enough for Shiro to copy, but the next was for Allura to lift her leg and set her foot down. Shiro attempted to copy the motion, but the moment his foot connected with the sandy terrain, a sharp pain shot up his leg. The former mermyd gasped harshly at the pain, his mouth falling open in a silent scream.

" _Shiro!_ " they all cried out in panic, but he held out his hand to stop them from approaching. He had to deal with this himself. It was what he had bargained for, so _he_ had to learn to live with it. He nodded to Allura, letting her know to keep going.

The princess was uncertain, but she continued to demonstrate the transfer of weight and shift of limbs in order to arrive standing on her feet. Shiro needed a moment to weather the pain as he put more and more weight on the pads of his defenseless feet, but he got it in the end, coming to stand on his already ravaged human feet. Despite his protests, Pidge and Allura moved in to help him stand. It might not have been possible otherwise.

"It's all right. You'll make it," Allura reassured him. "We'll just take this slowly."

Shiro nodded, offering each one of them a pained smile. The two women carefully helped Shiro to walk to the three myds. Hunk was the one he came to first.

"This...this is gonna work out. Right?" the young engineer asked him as they clasped hands. Shiro nodded, keeping the pain as far from his expression as he could manage. "All right. Then I hope you're happy here," he finished before making his way back to the water.

"Shiro," Lance started up next, "I...you've always been there for me. From the moment I was born, you were protecting me...watching over me. I don't think I can ever repay a debt like that...not really," he said, blinking back tears as he reached up to clasp Shiro's hand in his. Shiro shook his head as he smiled down at him. He had never viewed it as a debt – not with any of them. They were his family. That was all.

"If I didn't do the right thing today, all you have to do is tell me, and I'll do whatever I can to make it right."

Again, Shiro shook his head, slipping his hand free of Lance's and going for Keith's, taking that extra bit of time to join their hands.

 _Protect each other. Look out for each other. Be_ _ **happy**_ _together._

The two young mermyds smiled at each other for a long moment. Then Lance pressed a kiss to the back of Keith's hand before making his own way back to the water. Keith was still blushing when he looked back up at Shiro.

"I don't- really know what to say," the young guardsman said in a stilted voice. "Just that...you gave me a home when nobody else would. Without you, I would've died a long time ago. And it was you...who brought Lance into my life," he said, sniffing back tears of his own as he reached for Shiro's hand, drawing it to his forehead and resting it there for a few precious moments. "I hope you're happy here. I'm gonna miss you, but...I'm _so happy_ you're finally getting what you deserve," he said, offering his mentor a saddened smile. "You're my brother, Shiro. I love you."

Shiro nodded, tears of his own burning at his eyes as Allura and Pidge awkwardly helped him bend over so he could hug Keith goodbye. The young guardsman didn't linger after that. He made his way quickly back to the water, leaving the three humans to slowly stumble their way back along the beach.

"Shiro, are...are you sure this is what you want?" Allura asked him as they moved. "I've always _dreamed_ of being with you, but I- I didn't want you to have to give up everything you had...just for me."

Shiro nodded, smiling at her through the pain. The others would be fine without him. They all still had each other. With Zarkon dead, the war would be over soon, if it wasn't already. It wasn't as if they would never meet again. This new state of affairs would just take a little time to adjust to. They were all still family, after all. He knew that would never change because he could sense that, even from this distance, his three young charges were still keeping watch over him from out in the surf.

So, with the blessings of his family in his heart and the love of his life at his side, Takashi Shirogane moved forward to face his new life. Every step hurt like sharp knives, but he didn't care.

He was finally with Allura.

XxX


End file.
